Currency watch: Rupee gains 4 paise to 88.16 against US dollar; trade talks boost sentiment

The rupee ended 4 paise higher at 88.16 against the US dollar on Friday, supported by optimism over ongoing trade negotiations between India and the US and likely intervention by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to curb volatility, forex traders said.At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 88.22 and moved between an intraday low of 88.34 and a high of 88.06 before settling at 88.16. On Thursday, the rupee had depreciated by 35 paise to close at 88.20 against the greenback, PTI reported.The positive sentiment came after Chief Economic Adviser V Anantha Nageswaran expressed hope that the penal tariff imposed by the US on certain imports could be withdrawn after November 30. “I hope that the penal tariff would possibly be removed by the end of November,” Nageswaran said at an interactive session organised by Bharat Chamber of Commerce in Kolkata on Thursday, adding that a resolution to the tariff dispute may come within 8-10 weeks.Meanwhile, the dollar index, which tracks the greenback against six major currencies, rose 0.17% to 97.51. Brent crude futures, the global benchmark, were trading 0.59% lower at $67.04 per barrel.On the domestic market front, equity indices closed lower, with the Sensex slipping 387.73 points to 82,626.23 and the Nifty shedding 96.55 points to 25,327.05. Foreign Institutional Investors were net buyers, picking up equities worth Rs 390.74 crore on Friday, according to exchange data.Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal also reaffirmed progress in US-India trade talks. He said Assistant US Trade Representative for South and Central Asia Brendan Lynch visited New Delhi on September 16 for a daylong meeting with Indian officials. “The talks are progressing and are moving in the right direction,” Goyal said, noting that the US has imposed steep 50% tariffs on Indian goods.