Rupee Opens Flat Against US Dollar Ahead Of RBI Policy Outcome

Indian rupee on Thursday opened flat at 83.94 against the US Dollar ahead of RBI monetary policy outcome. Meanwhile, Sensex plunged 238 points to 79,229 and Nifty declined 64 points to 24,233 in morning trade on August 8, 2024. Earlier, rupee settled 4 paise lower at 83.96 (provisional) against US dollar on Wednesday (August 7, 2024) amid recovery in the US dollar and geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.

Forex traders said the Indian rupee witnessed decline on Wednesday due to robust U.S. dollar and positive crude oil rates. However, strength in the domestic markets cushioned the downside. Earlier on Monday (August 5, 2024), rupee had slumped 37 paise to settle at an all-time low of 84.09 against the U.S. dollar.

Meanwhile, oil prices rallied on Thursday for the third straight session after government data showed a steep draw in U.S. crude stockpiles, rebounding from multi-month lows touched this week, according to Reuters.

Brent crude futures surged 23 cents, or 0.3%, at $78.56 a barrel by 0017 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude jumped 29 cents, or 0.4%, to $75.52.
Brent tumbled to its weakest since early January on Monday, and WTI dipped to its lowest since February, hurt by worry over a U.S. recession and a selloff in global stocks, added the Reuters report.

On the other hand, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is set to disclose its bi-monthly monetary policy statement. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) will wrap up its key three-day meeting today as RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das expected to declare the decision at 10 am.