The Indian rupee rose to its highest in more than a week after gaining for a third consecutive session on Friday, helped by dollar sales by custodian banks and gains in the euro. The rupee gained 1.1 percent for the week, posting its best weekly gain since the week ended on January 18 as part of a powerful global risk rally, although US monthly employment data due later in the day will be keenly watched.
"Rupee should hover between 54 to 54.40 next week, especially if data comes in largely in line with expectations," said N. S. Venkatesh, treasurer at IDBI Bank. The partially convertible rupee closed at 54.2850/2950 per dollar versus its previous close of 54.56/57. The rupee rose to as high as 54.27 during the day, its highest since February 28.
In the offshore non-deliverable forwards, the one-month contract was at 54.69 while the three-month was at 55.30. In the currency futures market, the most-traded near-month dollar/rupee contracts on the National Stock Exchange, the MCX-SX and the United Stock Exchange all closed at around 54.54 with a total traded volume of $4.24 billion.