India Rupee Logs Best Week In 10 On Inflows; Indo-Pak Risks Ease
1 March 2019 / Evening Brief
Indian Rupee
- The rupee settled at 70.9050 against 70.72 at the previous close. The local unit moved in 70.68 -70.9950 per dollar band intra-day.
- The Indian rupee rose for a third week against the dollar, amid inflows into local shares and as geopolitical tensions between India and Pakistan somewhat eased. Rupee faced lot of uncertainties this week, but after the recent calm in the geopolitical tension, the fear of more negative in the market has reduced. Inflows into local shares and some gains in emerging market currencies also helped the local unit to gain. However, fear of further spike in crude oil prices and strength in the dollar index kept investors cautious.
Global Currency
- The dollar moved higher on Friday, hitting a 10-week high against the yen, as a jump in U.S. Treasury rates sent investors seeking higher yields into the dollar. The U.S. currency managed to claw back earlier losses after data showed U.S. gross domestic product increased at a 2.6 percent annualized rate in the fourth quarter, above economists' forecasts for a 2.3 percent gain. U.S. interest rates higher than in other developed economies, investors have been turning to the dollar for yield.
- The euro slipped 0.1 percent to $1.1360 EUR=EBS , keeping the single currency firmly in a trading range against the dollar it has been stuck in for several months.
Global Markets
- Brent crude fell on Friday, weighed down by surging U.S. supply and concerns of a global economic slowdown, but falling OPEC supplies put a floor under prices. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures CLc1 were at $57.24 per barrel, up 2 cents.
- Gold slipped to two-week lows and was set for its biggest weekly fall in nearly four months on Friday, pressured by a reviving dollar and rising stocks.
Global Markets at one Glance
| Markets at 5.00pm | In INR | % Change | |
| USD/INR | 70.915 | 70.915 | 0.12 |
| EUR/USD | 1.13841 | 80.73 | 0.24 |
| GBP/USD | 1.32377 | 93.83 | -0.06 |
| USD/JPY | 111.812 | 0.63 | -0.25 |
| SEK/INR | 9.2220 | 7.6898 | 0.0285 |
| DKK/INR | 6.318 | 11.2250 | 0.49 |
| AUD/USD | 1.4053 | 50.45 | 0.42 |
| DXY | 96.202 | 0.05 | |
| Index | Today | % Change |
| NIFTY | 10863.5 | 0.66 |
| SENSEX | 36063.81 | 0.55 |
| NIKKEI | 221602.69 | 1.02 |
| HANG SENG | 28812.17 | 0.63 |
| SHANGHAI | 2994.005 | 1.8 |
| CAC# | 5271.73 | 0.6 |
| FTSE # | 7264.61 | 0.0042 |
| DAX # | 11641.11 | 1.09 |
| Commodities | Today | % Change |
| GOLD # | 1308.66 | -0.3 |
| SILVER# | 15.47 | -0.44 |
| BRENT # | 66.41 | 0.15 |
| NYMEX # | 57.42 | 0.35 |
| Today | Today |
| OPEN | 70.7400 |
| HIGH | 70.9950 |
| LOW | 70.6800 |
| CLOSE | 70.9050 |
Key Events of the Day
| Date | Time | Currency | Event | Actual | Forecast | Previous |
| 01/03/2019 | 14.25 | EUR | German Manufacturing PMI (Feb) | 47.6 | 47.6 | 47.6 |
| 01/03/2019 | 14.25 | EUR | German Unemployment Change (Feb) | -21K | -5K | -4K |
| 01/03/2019 | 15.00 | GBP | Manufacturing PMI (Feb) | 52.0 | 52.0 | 52.6 |
| 01/03/2019 | 15.30 | EUR | CPI (YoY) (Feb) | 1.5% | 1.5% | 1.4% |
