- Indian Rupee (INR) holds steady for a third day
- India manufacturing PMI rose to 59.1 in March
- US Dollar (USD) falls versus major peers
- US JOLTS job opening and factory orders rose
The US Dollar Indian Rupee (USD/INR) exchange rate is holding steady for a third straight day. The pair rose 0.01% in the previous session, settling on Monday at 83.36. At 21:00 UTC, USD/INR trades -0.0% at 83.36 and trades in a range of 83.34 to 83.45
The Ruppe was unmoved despite factory growth reaching a 16 year high in Marc and as hiring rose at the fastest pace in six months.
The HSBC final Indian manufacturing PMI rose to 59.1 in March up from 56.9 in February and the highest level since February 2008. Although it was slightly lower than the preliminary reading. The sector was supported by strong international and domestic demand. with exports rising at the fastest pace in nearly two years.
The US Dollar is falling across the board. The US Dollar Index, which measures the greenback versus a basket of major currencies, trades -0.20% at the time of writing at 104.78 giving back gains from the previous day.
The USD is easing lower after reaching a fresh 5-month high overnight. The USD was lifted by stronger than expected US ISM manufacturing data at the start of the week, which raised doubts over whether the Federal Reserve will cut rates in June.
Today the USD has fallen away from this peak despite factory orders rising by more than expected to 1% and JOLTS job openings coming in at 8.756 million, ahead of the 8.75 million forecast.
Instead, the USD is coming down after comments from San Francisco’s Federal Reserve President Mary Daly said that three interest rate cuts this year was a reasonable baseline although she added that there was no need to cut rates imminently.
Meanwhile, Cleveland Fed President Lorretta Mester said she wants to see more evidence that inflation is cooling towards the 2% target.
Looking ahead to Wednesday, attention will be o US ADP payrolls ahead of Friday’s non-farm payroll data. US ISM services PMI for March will also be under the spotlight and is expected to 52.7 up from 52.6.
