The Indian rupee advanced 20 paise to 95.41 against the US dollar during early trading on Tuesday as Brent crude prices and the dollar index eased following a halt in US-Iran tensions. Currency dealers noted the local unit started positively after Israel and Iran decided to reduce hostilities. At the interbank forex market, the rupee began at 95.47 before reaching 95.41, marking a 20-paise improvement from the prior close. The previous session had seen the currency weaken 43 paise to close at 95.61. Analysts at IFA Global projected a trading band of 95.40-95.80 with a slight downward tilt. The dollar index stood at 99.98, declining 0.06 percent, while Brent crude futures dropped 0.99 percent to $93.32 per barrel. Domestic equities rose, with the Sensex adding 350.57 points to 73,874.83 and the Nifty gaining 114.50 points to 23,237.50. Foreign investors sold shares worth 5,555.67 crore rupees on a net basis the prior day. India posted a current account surplus of 7.1 billion dollars, or 0.7 percent of GDP, in the January-March quarter, supported by services exports and remittances. The full fiscal year recorded a deficit of 25.2 billion dollars, or 0.6 percent of GDP.
