Rupee declines 10 paise to close at 86.98 against US dollar
Mumbai, Feb 18 (PTI): Rupee depreciated 10 paise to close at 86.98 against US dollar on Tuesday weighed down by an uptick in the American currency index and rising crude oil prices.
Forex traders said there is a negative bias for the USD/INR pair as the RBI support is tapering off slowly.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 86.94 and touched the high of 86.91 against the greenback during intraday. It ended the session at day's low of 86.98 against the dollar, logging a loss of 10 paise from previous close.
On Monday, the rupee depreciated 17 paise to close at 86.88 against the US dollar.
Traders said disappointing trade deficit data from the domestic macroeconomic front also pressurised the rupee.
India's exports declined for the third month in a row in January, falling by 2.38 per cent year-on-year to USD 36.43 billion, while the trade deficit widened to USD 22.99 billion in the month.
Imports rose by 10.28 per cent year-on-year to USD 59.42 billion in January due to an increase in gold shipments, according to the Commerce Ministry data.
"Indian rupee declined today on weak domestic markets and a slight uptick in the US dollar index. Disappointing trade deficit data from the domestic markets too pressurised the rupee," said Anuj Choudhary, Research Analyst at Mirae Asset Sharekhan.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was at 106.95, higher by 0.35 per cent.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was quoted 0.77 per cent higher at USD 75.80 per barrel in futures trade.
In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex declined 29.47 points, or 0.04 per cent, to settle at 75,967.39, while the Nifty fell 14.20 points, or 0.06 per cent, to 22,945.30 points.
On the global front, Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday asked business leaders to unleash their talents in a rare meeting with billionaires including Jack Ma, founder of e-commerce giant Alibaba, in a bid to shore up sagging business confidence and reverse economic slowdown.
The meeting came amid concerns over Donald Trump's decision to hike tariffs against Chinese exports to the US amid the slowdown of the Chinese economy, which hovered at around 5 per cent GDP growth in the last few years.
Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director, Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP, said despite a recovery in the US dollar and concerns over a potential global trade war sparked by US tariff threats, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) intervention could limit further INR depreciation.
"Analysts forecast a negative bias for the rupee, with a potential rebound if RBI continues its market intervention. The widening trade deficit, which reached USD 22.99 billion in January, also contributed to the INR's vulnerability," he said, adding that Wednesday's rupee range is expected between 86.75 and 87.25 as traders await Trump speech and US-Russia summit to end the war.
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Marxism will remain relevant despite Left electoral's losses, says general secretary M A Baby
New Delhi (PTI): CPI(M) General Secretary M A Baby on Thursday asserted that the Left movement would remain relevant despite not being in power in any state, saying the ideology would continue to endure as long as social and economic inequalities persist.
Hitting back at BJP leader Rajeev Chandrasekhar over his reported remarks that Marxism had become irrelevant, Baby, in an interview with PTI Videos, said, "So long as there is division in society, so long as there is exploitation of the majority of workers, peasants and ordinary masses by a handful of billionaires, Marxism will remain relevant."
"That perhaps Mr Rajeev Chandrasekhar may not be able to understand, but this is the fact of the matter," he said.
Baby acknowledged that the CPI(M)-led Left was currently without an elected government in any state, but maintained that electoral setbacks would not diminish the movement's role.
"We may not have an elected government in any state. There were occasions when we didn't have a government. But the red flag and the commitment to organise and struggle for the rights of the dispossessed, marginalised and exploited will always be upheld by CPI(M) and the Left movement," he said.
He said the Left continued to enjoy support among workers, peasants, agricultural labourers, youth, students and women, and argued that the movement remained necessary because "oppression and assault" continued in society.
"So long as such problems exist in society, the red flag and the working class movement will continue to work among the masses," the Left leader said.
Exuding confidence on the Left's revival, Baby said the party would reflect on the reasons behind its electoral loss.
"We may be rejected in one election, but we will stage our comeback by understanding what went wrong with us," he said, adding, "We will listen to people and we will come back with higher strength."
Baby also criticised the Congress over reported factional tensions in Kerala after the Congress-led United Democratic Front's victory in the state.
"The way they are behaving is being watched by the people of Kerala," he said, referring to infighting within the Congress.
"Those who have given a massive majority to Congress and UDF would be watching all this," he added, while urging party leaders to "settle the problem in an amicable, democratic manner".
Referring to West Bengal, Baby alleged that violence had escalated following the BJP's victory in the state assembly polls.
"It is quite unfortunate that the moment BJP snatched a massive victory in West Bengal, violence has also started on a big scale," he said.
He also accused the Trinamool Congress of being "notorious for violent activities" and alleged that the "RSS-controlled BJP" had "unleashed violence in many places" after the election results.
"This is not good for Bengal, not good for the country. We wish and hope that normalcy would be restored as soon as possible," he said.
Baby said the CPI(M) and the Left in West Bengal would continue efforts to "pacify people" and avoid violence and confrontation.
Asked about former Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan not reacting publicly to the election results, Baby said Vijayan would respond "at an appropriate time".
