- Indian Rupee (INR) is rising in thin volumes
- Oil prices fall below $60
- The US Dollar (USD) is unchanged versus major peers
- US ISM services rose to 52.4 and ADP payrolls jumped 42k
The US dollar-to-Indian rupee (USD/INR) exchange rate is falling after gains yesterday. The pair rose 0.01% in the previous session, settling on Tuesday at 88.73. At 19.30 UTC on Wednesday, USD/INR traded -0.18% at 88.56 and traded in a range of 88.54 to 88.76.
The Indian Rupee traded on thin volumes due to the bank holiday. The Rupee rose today, but has come under pressure recently owing to Foreign Institutional Investor (FII) outflows over the past 4 months.
Traders expect the Reserve Bank of India to step in to support the Rupee in the coming sessions.
Oil prices fell over 1.5% after data showed that US oil inventories rose by 5.2 million barrels. This was well above the expected decline of 100k barrels. A lower oil price is beneficial for countries such as India, which imports over 80% of its oil needs.
The US Dollar is falling against the Rupee but is flat versus its major peers. The US Dollar Index, which measures the greenback against a basket of major currencies, is trading 0.01% at 100.21, after five days of gains last week.
U.S. dollar was little changed on Wednesday, holding close to its highest level since May as traders digest the latest service sector activity data, ADP payrolls, and as investors remain cautious about the prospects of another Fed rate cut in December
ADP payroll with Johnson expected to rise to 42,000, up from 32,000 in September, and coming in ahead of forecasts of 25,000. The ADP payroll report usually takes a back seat to the non-farm payroll report. However, the NFP won’t be released owing to the government shutdown.
The ISM services PMI showed that activity in the sector expanded at a faster pace in October, rising to 52.4 from 50.0 in September.