Indian shares jumped 1%, as the mood in Asia was
buoyant. Most equity markets advanced, while currencies such as
the Chinese yuan and the South Korean won firmed 0.2% and 0.4%, respectively.
The dollar index dipped slightly after sharp
overnight gains, while U.S. yields softened as the Fed peak rate
expectations hovered near 5.45%. The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment
benefits fell again last week, pointing to sustained labour
market strength and adding to financial market fears that the
Federal Reserve could keep hiking interest rates for longer.
(Reporting by Anushka Trivedi; Editing by Janane Venkatraman)
By Anushka Trivedi
MUMBAI, March 3 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee
strengthened on Friday to a one-month peak against the U.S.
currency, tracking a rise in its Asian peers, and further driven
by potential dollar inflows.
The rupee firmed 0.32% to 82.33 per dollar by 10:20
a.m. IST. It rose up to 82.2525, its strongest level since Feb.
3, and if the day's gains hold, this would be the rupee's best
week in a month.
The currency's move is helped by foreign equity inflows,
said a private bank trader, who noted that this breakout of the
82.50-82.90 trading range could see the rupee head towards the
82.15-level.
"However, the theme of aggressive Federal Reserve policy in
the near term could limit gains in the local unit," said Amit
Pabari, managing director at CR Forex Advisors.
After six days of being net sellers, foreign institutional
investors bought Indian stocks worth 127.7 billion rupees ($1.55
billion) on March 2, according to provisional data from the
exchanges.
The inflow was likely related to investment by foreign
investors into Adani group companies' stocks. U.S. boutique
investment firm GQG Partners bought shares worth $1.87
billion in four Adani entities, a regulatory filing on Thursday
showed.
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