Rupee Opens Stronger Against Greenback

The Indian rupee opened 6 paise stronger against the US dollar at 85.58 on Wednesday, compared to its previous close of 85.52 on Tuesday.

Anil Kumar Bhansali, head of treasury and executive director at Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP said, "The range for the day is expected to be between 85.35 and 85.95. Exporters should consider hedging near 86.00, while importers may hedge for the near term at 85.50 and below."

Brent oil prices saw a slight increase, trading at $67.24 per barrel, up 1%. Investors are closely watching the upcoming OPEC+ meeting to determine output levels for August. Demand expectations received a boost after a private sector survey indicated an expansion in factory activity in China, the world's largest oil importer. "Brent has remained in a range of $66.34 to $69.04 since the end of the Iran-Israel conflict, with concerns of supply disruptions from the Middle East easing. US crude inventories rose by 680,000 barrels last week," Bhansali noted.

Market participants are also awaiting the US Non-Farm Payroll report on Thursday, which is expected to influence expectations regarding the Federal Reserve's rate cuts in the second half of the year, he said.

The dollar index was pinned at 96.73, with the US 10-year yield at 4.25%. The euro was at 1.17, the British pound at 1.37, and the Japanese Yen stable at 143.64. Asian currencies were down against the dollar following the Senate's passing of the OBBBA bill. The Chinese Yuan was at 7.16, the Indonesian Rupiah at 16,224, and the South Korean Won at 1,36, Bhansali said.

In the equities market, the Nikkei was down for the second consecutive day by 1.01% due to inconclusive trade deals with the US. The Dow Jones was up 400 points overnight, while the Nasdaq and S&P were both down. The Hang Seng, which was closed yesterday, was up 0.43%, while the Shanghai Composite was down 0.11%. The GIFT Nifty indicated a downtick of 6 points in pre-opening.