THE RUPEE: all-round fall after budget

Bears dominated the money market as the dollar touched an important level of 86 in the interbank deals in the post-budget session on Saturday, money experts said. The rupee drifted lower against dollar, shedding 10 paisa for buying and selling at 85.95 and 86.00, they said.
INTERBANK MARKET RATES: Rush for dollar forward buying, kept the rupee under pressure, in the meantime, it is expected that the rupee may not fall sharply versus dollar, some experts said. On Friday, the dollar sank and is likely to drop further in the week ahead after weak US jobs data added to evidence of a marked economic slowdown. The negative sentiment in the United States contrasted with cautious optimism in the euro zone, with the euro touching a one-month high on optimism that Greece will receive its next aid payment and avoid restructuring its debt.
The single currency surged after the European Union, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund said the next tranche of international aid for Greece should be available in July.
Add in a European Central Bank policy meeting, where ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet is expected to signal a July interest-rate hike by using the term "vigilance" in reference to monitoring inflation, and dollar has little upside.
"The next few weeks will see broad choppy ranges," said Gareth Sylvester, senior currency strategist at San Francisco-based Klarity FX. "So many questions remain."
OPEN MARKET RATES: The rupee after maintaining a stable trend for the whole week reacted negatively, losing five paisa for buying and selling at 86.15 and 86.35, they added. The rupee dropped by 84 paisa versus euro for buying and selling at Rs 125.21 and Rs 125.71, they said.

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Open Buying     Rs 86.15

Open Selling    Rs 86.35

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Interbank Closing Rates: Interbank Closing Rates For Dollar on Saturday.

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Buying          Rs 85.95

Selling         Rs 86.00

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RUPEE IN LAHORE: The Pak rupee showed stability and remained unchanged on buying side, while it gained five-paisa on selling side in relation to the greenback in the local currency market on Saturday.
According to the currency dealers, the dollar resumed trading at last day closing of Rs 86.10 and Rs 86.35, as its buying and selling rates, respectively. However, at the end of trading, the dollar could not sustain and declined to Rs 86.00 and Rs 86.30 on buying and selling counters, respectively.
On the contrary, the rupee remained under pressure and was depreciated against the pound sterling. The pound's buying and selling rates were improved to Rs 141.00 and Rs 141.60, as compared to Friday closing of Rs 140.30 and Rs 141.00, respectively, the dealers added.
RUPEE IN ISLAMABAD AND RAWALPINDI: The dollar remained firm against rupee at the currency markets of Islamabad and Rawalpindi on Saturday.
The dollar resumed trading at Rs 85.60 (buying) and Rs 85.80 (selling) against same last rates. It did not observe further change in the evening session and closed at Rs 85.60 (buying) and Rs 85.80 (selling).
Pound sterling opened at Rs 136.30 (buying) and Rs 136.70 (selling) against same previous rates. It did not witness any change in the evening session and closed at Rs 136.30 (buying) and Rs 136.70 (selling).
Copyright Business Recorder, 2011