RBI :Rupee hits over one-month high, ends 10 paise up

The rupee Wednesday rose to its highest level in over a month and closed 10 paise up at 61.75 against the dollar following sustained selling of American currency by exporters and some banks, amid firm local equities.

At the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market, the local currency commenced weak at 61.90 a dollar from previous close of 61.85. It eased to a low of 61.92 in early trades.

However, helped by positive cues, the rupee later rebounded to a over one-month intra-day high of 61.6650, before concluding at 61.75 - a rise of ten paise or 0.16%. On Tuesday, it has gained 19 paise or 0.31%.

The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex on Wednesday rallied 67.13 points, or 0.32%, while FIIs purchased shares worth $31.23 million on Tuesday, as per Sebi data.

The dollar index was up 0.1% against a basket of six major global rivals.

The US will be releasing its service PMI and ADP Nonfarm employment data, which will be very significant for the markets, said Abhishek Goenka, founder and CEO, India Forex Advisors.

Pramit Brahmbhatt, CEO, Alpari Financial Services, (India) said: "Taking cues from strong local equities, the rupee appreciated by 10 paise to end the day. Asian currencies traded positively as tensions between Ukraine and Russia lessened. The trading range for the USD/INR pair is expected to be within 61.40 to 62.40." Election Commission announced dates for the high-stakes Lok Sabha elections to be held between April 7 and May 12.

Meanwhile, forward dollar premium ended slightly weak on sustained receipts by exporters.

The benchmark six-month premium payable in August closed a tad lower at 256-257.5 paise from 256.5-257.5 paise previously.

Far forward contracts maturing in February 2015 also softened to 500-502 paise from 503-504.5 paise.

The RBI fixed the reference rate for dollar at 61.8550 and for the euro at 84.9195.

The rupee improved further against the pound to 103.02 from 103.20 and also strengthened to 84.70 per euro from 85.12 previously. It hardened to 60.32 per 100 Japanese yen from 60.75.

STOCK MARKET:Sensex ends above 21,000 level after 5 weeks

The benchmark Sensex on Friday jumped over 133 points to reclaim the 21,000 mark buoyed by gains in bluechips like TCS, Tata Motors and Hindalco, to log the best weekly rise since November 2013.

Brokers said sentiment was strong as foreign investors have remained net buyers of Indian stocks in the past ten days.

Firm global cues also helped after US Fed Chairperson Janet Yellen on Thursday reiterated the Fed is likely to continue tapering asset purchases at a “measured” pace.

After gaining 450 points in past four sessions, the BSE Sensex shot up by 133.13 points, or 0.63 per cent, to end at 21,120.12. The index last closed above the 21,000 level on January 24 when it concluded at 21,133.56.

The gauge had touched the day’s high of 21,140.51 intra-day on Friday. Experts said all eyes are on India’s October-December quarter GDP growth.

Hindalco led the 18 gainers in 30-share Sensex. TCS, Tata Motors, Sun Pharma, ONGC and BHEL were among notable winners.

However, Maruti Suzuki led the 12 Sensex losers. Shares of the carmaker lost 4.54 per cent, amid investor concerns regarding its proposed Gujarat plant.

For the week, the Sensex gained 419.37 points - the biggest rise since the week ending November 29, 2013 when the barometer surged 574.54 points.

“Going ahead, the markets would continue to follow developments on the political scene and geopolitical developments in Ukraine,” said Sanjeev Zarbade, Vice President- Private Client Group Research, Kotak Securities.

The National Stock Exchange index Nifty rose 38.15 points, or 0.61 per cent, to end at 6,276.95, after climbing to 6,282.70 intra-day.

Sectorally, the BSE healthcare sector index gained the most by rising 2.27 per cent, followed by IT index (1.44 per cent), Auto index (1.37 per cent) and Capital Goods (1.18 per cent). Overall, nine of the 12 sectoral indices gained. Oil & gas, consumer durables and FMCG ended in the red.

Global markets, including those in Asia, were positive ahead of reports on American housing, consumer spending and economic growth.