Rupee gains on dollar sales by foreign banks, uptick in Asian peers

By Jaspreet Kalra

MUMBAI (Reuters) - The Indian rupee gained on Friday, aided by the strength of its Asian peers, positive market sentiment following a surprise surge in domestic GDP data and dollar sales by foreign banks, traders said.

The rupee was at 82.8550 against the U.S. dollar as of 10:45 a.m. IST, marking a 0.07% increase from its previous session close at 82.9125.

The dollar index was at 104.1 after logging a rise of 0.2% increase on Thursday. Most Asian currencies saw a slight uptick, with the Philippine peso leading the gains, rising 0.3%.

The dollar-rupee pair was "well-offered," with foreign banks dominating dollar sales in early trading, a foreign exchange trader at a private bank said.

India's GDP growth in the October-December quarter far exceeded expectations, with the economy expanding by 8.4%, against the 6.6% anticipated by economists polled by Reuters.

The surprise jump in GDP data alongside an in-line U.S. inflation figures further bolstered market sentiment, potentially supporting an upside for the rupee.

The positive bias on the rupee persists, though the extent of appreciation will depend on how much the Reserve Bank of India allows the currency to gain, Anindya Banerjee, head of foreign exchange research at Kotak Securities, said.

The RBI has likely been buying dollars on days with substantial inflows, limiting the rupee's upside, traders said.

The U.S. personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index rose 0.3% month-on-month in January, data released on Thursday showed.

The data for December was revised lower to show the PCE price index gaining 0.1% instead of the previously reported 0.2%.

While the inflation data had little impact on expectations of rate cuts by the Federal Reserve, Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester said on Thursday that three rate cuts over 2024 remain her baseline view, contingent upon continued progress in controlling inflation and a labour market that cools but stays healthy.

(Reporting Jaspreet Kalra; Editing by Dhanya Ann Thoppil)