Mumbai, Apr 3: Extending gains for the second straight day today, the rupee today gained 15 paise to close at 50.72/73 against the US dollar amid signs of fresh capital inflows.
Forex dealers said sustained selling of the American currency by exporters aided the rupee sentiment. At the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market, the local unit moved between 50.50 and 50.77 before settling for the day at 50.72/73, a rise of 15 paise or 0.29 per cent, from the previous close of 50.87/88.
Meanwhile, the BSE benchmark index Sensex today improved by 119.27 points to 17,597.42.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) injected USD 253.68 million on March 30 and April 2, as per Sebi data. However, dollar index, consisting of six major rivals, was up by over 0.1 per cent.
The rupee premium for the forward dollar continued to rule mixed on alternate bouts of buying and selling.
The benchmark six-month forward dollar premium payable in September ended a bit lower at 167-169 paise from last Friday's level of 168-170 paise, while far-forward contracts maturing in March inched up further to 297-299 paise from 295-297 paise previously.
The RBI fixed the reference rate for the US dollar at 50.5645 and for euro at 67.4854. The rupee rallied further against the pound sterling to 81.13/15 from last weekend's close of 81.52/54 and also improved to 67.54/56 per euro from 67.90/92. It also rose against the Japanese yen to 61.76/78 per 100 yen from last close of Rs 62.06/08.
