Rupee nearly flat, wedged between uptick in Asia FX and corporate dollar bids
MUMBAI, June 5 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee was little changed on Thursday as corporate dollar bids, including from local oil companies, blunted positive cues from a rise in most of its Asian peers.
The rupee was at 85.8525 against the U.S. dollar as of 11:30 a.m. IST, nearly unchanged from its close at 85.90 in the previous session.
Asian currencies were mostly higher. The dollar index firmed slightly to 98.8 after dropping 0.5% on Thursday after weaker-than-expected U.S. economic data boosted hopes of rate cuts by the Federal Reserve later this year.
The odds of a rate cut in September have ticked up to 75%, per CME's FedWatch tool. Interest rate futures are pricing in muted odds of Fed cuts in June and July.
Weak U.S. economic data alongside persistent uncertainty about tariff policies has continued to weigh on the dollar, which has declined nearly 9% against major peers this year so far.
A 90-day pause on U.S. reciprocal tariffs is set to elapse in early July but legal back-and-forth on the viability of the broad-based levies may continue to keep uncertainty elevated.
"While no deals and resumption of reciprocal tariffs could yet be negative for Asia FX, a stable CNY alongside implicit FX commitments could see some currencies, especially North Asia, outperform," BofA Global Research said in a note.
Meanwhile, India's benchmark equity indexes the BSE Sensex and the Nifty 50 (.NSEI), opens new tab rose about 0.3% each, supported by lower U.S. Treasury yields and a weaker dollar.
India's 10-year benchmark bond yield dipped slightly to 6.1970% with traders keeping their focus on the Reserve Bank of India's upcoming monetary policy decision due on Friday.
The central bank is widely expected to deliver a third consecutive rate cut as muted inflation provides ample space to focus on boosting economic growth further.
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