Data overnight showed U.S. job openings dropped to their lowest level in nearly two years in February, indicating that the Fed rate hikes were cooling off the U.S. labour market. "This long-awaited decline in job openings came prior to the emergence of financial stability concerns, which originated with the U.S. regional bank liquidity stresses in early March," Morgan Stanley pointed out in a note.
The job openings release comes on the back of data that showed that U.S. manufacturing activity slumped in March to the lowest level in nearly three years. The focus now shifts to the U.S. monthly non-farm payrolls data due this Friday, which some analysts said gathers more significance in light of the decline in job openings.
Meanwhile, oil prices were up on the day, supported by the OPEC+ planned production cuts.
The "increased uncertainty" on oil will make it "more difficult" for rupee to climb above 82 levels, the trader said.
KEY INDICATORS:
** One-month non-deliverable rupee forward at 82.25;
onshore one-month forward premium at 15 paise
** USD/INR NSE April futures settled on Monday at 82.42
** USD/INR April forward premium at 10.5 paise
** Dollar index down to 101.50
** Brent crude futures up 0.6% at $85.5 per barrel
** Ten-year U.S. note yield at 3.36%
** SGX Nifty nearest-month futures down 0.3% at 17,522
** As per NSDL data, foreign investors bought a net $287.8mln
worth of Indian shares on March 31
** NSDL data shows foreign investors bought a net $5.7mln worth
of Indian bonds on March 31
(Reporting by Nimesh Vora; Editing by Dhanya Ann Thoppil)
