A rising trend was witnessed on the currency market on Wednesday as the rupee appreciated against the dollar in the process of trading, dealers said. The rupee extended its gains in relation to the dollar picking up more two paisa for buying and one paisa for selling at Rs 98.46 and Rs 98.49, they said.
In the third Asian trade, Asian currencies fell broadly on Wednesday, with the Philippine peso hitting a nine-month low, after robust US economic data strengthened speculation that the Federal Reserve could slow the pace of its monetary stimulus later this year.
The yen strengthened on Wednesday as Japanese stocks fell, capping the dollar's gains against a basket of currencies as it hovered near a three-year high. The dollar lost 0.1 percent to 102.26 yen, locking step once again with the Nikkei, which struggled to stay above water in a choppy session. It finally squeezed out a 0.1 percent gain on the day. The dollar was trading against the Indian rupee at Rs 56.23, the greenback was at 3.0650 versus the Malaysian ringgit and the US currency was at 6.1318 in terms of the Chinese yuan.
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Open Bid Rs 99.75
Open Offer Rs 99.95
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Bid Rate Rs 98.46
Offer Rate Rs 98.49
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According to the currency dealers, the dollar commenced trading at its Tuesday closing of Rs 99.90 and Rs 100.10 on buying and selling counters, respectively. The dollar witnessed no change in its buying rate and stayed unchanged at Rs 99.90 while its selling rate was further improved from Rs 100.10 to Rs 100.20, the dealers said.
Similarly, the national currency showed stability and remained unchanged on buying side while it was declined on selling side against the pound sterling. The pound was traded at Rs 150.25 and Rs 150.80 compared with overnight closing of Rs 150.25 and Rs 150.50, respectively, they added.
The dollar opened at Rs 99.80 for buying and Rs 100 for selling against last rate. It did not observe further change in the second session, and closed at Rs 99.80 for buying and Rs 100 for selling by the end of evening session.
Pound Sterling opened at Rs 154 for buying and Rs 155 for selling against same last rate. It closed at the same rate without further change by the end of second session.