Mumbai, March 6 The rupee remained stable and gained 2 paise to 91.62 against the US dollar on Friday after the US announced a 30-day waiver for Indian refiners to purchase Russian oil, easing pressure on global energy flows amidst the ongoing conflict in West Asia.
Forex traders said that the negative domestic equity markets and the withdrawal of foreign funds resisted the rupee's upward movement despite a weakening American currency.
Amid the escalating conflict involving the US, Israel, and Iran, the American administration has announced a temporary 30-day waiver to allow Indian refiners to purchase Russian oil. Treasury Secretary Scott Besant said on Thursday that "this temporary measure will alleviate pressure caused by Iran's attempt to control global energy supplies."
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at its previous session's closing level of 91.64 and gained 2 paise to 91.62 against the US dollar.
The Indian currency recovered 41 paise to settle at 91.64 against the dollar on Thursday after losing 97 paise in the previous two trading sessions.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which measures the strength of the US dollar against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.37 per cent lower at 98.94.
Brent crude, the global benchmark for oil, was down 1.05 per cent at USD 84.51 per barrel in futures trading.
On the domestic equity market front, the Sensex lost 388.23 points or 0.49 per cent to 79,627.67, while Nifty fell 118.30 points or 0.48 per cent to 24,647.60 in early trading.
Foreign institutional investors sold equities worth Rs 3,752.52 crore on a net basis on Thursday, according to exchange data.
