Mumbai, February 18 The rupee rose by 5 paise to close at 90.67 (provisional) against the US dollar on Wednesday, driven by inflows of foreign funds and positive domestic equity markets.
However, higher global crude oil prices and a strengthening US dollar limited the sharp gains in the local currency, forex traders said.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 90.60 against the US dollar and traded in a narrow range of 90.60-90.71 before settling at 90.67 (provisional), up by 5 paise from its previous close.
The rupee gained 2 paise to settle at 90.72 against the US dollar on Tuesday.
"The rupee remained within a range, with the US dollar being supported by the RBI," said Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director, Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which measures the strength of the US dollar against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.08 per cent higher at 97.22.
"The dollar index was slightly higher, and analysts expect a near-term rebound after a prolonged slump. Strong US growth and foreign investment interest supported the dollar," Bhansali added.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading 0.22 per cent higher at USD 67.57 per barrel in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, the Sensex jumped by 283.29 points to close at 83,734.25, while the Nifty advanced by 93.95 points to 25,819.35.
On Tuesday, foreign institutional investors turned net buyers and purchased equities worth Rs 995.21 crore, according to exchange data.
