KEY INDICATORS:
** One-month non-deliverable rupee forward at 82.21;
onshore one-month forward premium at 11.5 paisa
** USD/INR NSE April futures settled on Thursday at 82.1725
** USD/INR April forward premium at 1.5 paisa
** Dollar index at 101.78
** Brent crude futures down 0.2% at $81 per barrel
** Ten-year U.S. note yield drops to 3.53%
** SGX Nifty nearest-month futures at 17,668
** As per NSDL data, foreign investors bought a net $20.6 mln
worth of Indian shares on April 19
** NSDL data shows foreign investors sold a net $1.7 mln worth
of Indian bonds on April 19
(Reporting by Nimesh Vora; Editing by Varun H K)
By Nimesh Vora
MUMBAI, April 21 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee is
expected to open little changed or marginally higher on Friday,
after weak U.S. data prompted a pullback on U.S. yields and
dampened risk appetite.
The non-deliverable forwards indicate the rupee will open at around 82.10 to 82.15 to the dollar compared with
82.1475 in the previous session.
The local currency on Thursday managed to nudge higher,
halting its recent losing run and avoiding slipping below the
82.20-82.30 level.
The rupee at open "will be dealing with conflicting cues", a
trader at private sector bank said.
"On one hand, the dollar index is down alongside U.S.
yields, and on the other, U.S. growth worries is impacting
risk," he said.
The 82.20 to 82.30 level should hold up "for now" and there
should be "decent" dollar demand ahead of 82.
The 2-year U.S. yield inched lower in Asia, adding to
Thursday's decline following soft U.S. data.
The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment
benefits increased moderately last week, and a report by the
Philadelphia Federal Reserve showed that manufacturing activity
in the mid-Atlantic unexpectedly contracted in April.
The two data points when combined with the slump in U.S.
retail sales and manufacturing activity fuelled recession
worries.
The softer-than-expected regional Fed survey prompted market
participants to price in a lower policy rate path in 2024 for
the U.S. Federal Reserve, Morgan Stanley noted in its daily
update to clients.
Meanwhile, Fed speakers mostly reinforced current market
expectations that the U.S. central bank will opt for another
rate hike in May and then pause.
There is more Fed speak lined up on Friday with six separate
speaking engagements on the calendar, according to ING.
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