Rupee surges 21 paise to 74.63 against U.S. dollar in early trade

Rupee depreciated by 29 paise to close at 74.84 against the U.S. currency on Feb. 22

The rupee recovered 21 paise to 74.63 in early trade on February 23 tracking positive domestic equities as investors continued to keep a watch on the latest developments around Ukraine.

The local currency opened on a strong note at 74.64 to a dollar at the interbank foreign exchange market and inched higher to 74.63, registering a gain of 21 paise over its previous close.

On Feb. 22, the rupee depreciated by 29 paise to close at 74.84 against the U.S. currency.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.04% higher at 96.06.

The Indian rupee opened stronger against the U.S. dollar on Feb. 23 as the greenback dipped and crude oil prices also witnessed some correction from Tuesday’s highs and lifted sentiments, said Sriram Iyer, Senior Research Analyst at Reliance Securities.

However, most of the Asian and emerging market currencies were still weaker against the U.S. dollar as cautious tone could set in and could cap appreciation bias for the currency.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Feb. 21 signed decrees to recognise Ukraine’s regions of “Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics” as “independent”, escalating the tension in the region and increasing fears of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. In retaliation, the U.S., the EU and Japan announced a host of sanctions on Russia.