The rupee was trading a tad strong at 63.57 as the d ollar inched lower against a basket of major rivals on Wednesday, showing scant reaction so far to US President Donald Trump's State of the Union address.
However, month-end dollar demand from importers and banks and weak domestic equities restricted the rupee's gains.
The local unit opened a tad weak at 63.61 against yesterday’s closing level of 63.60 at the inter-bank foreign exchange market today. It hovered in a range of 63.75 and 63.55 before quoting at 63.57, up 3 paise at 4.50 pm local time.
Forex dealers said that persistent dollar demand and FII outflows from the
Meanwhile, the Sensex dropped 68.71 points to end at 35,965.02 and the Nifty fell 21.95 points to 11,027.70 as investors remained on the sidelines ahead of the Union Budget to be presented tomorrow.
In the overseas market, the dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, was last down 0.1 percent on the day at 89.062 , staying above a three-year low around 88.43 set last week.
Investors have turned their focus to the US Federal Reserve’s monetary policy statement due later on Wednesday, and a US jobs report on Friday that will include data on nonfarm payrolls and average hourly earnings. The Fed is widely expected to keep interest rates unchanged this week, and investors will be looking to its policy statement for fresh hints on the outlook for interest rates this year.