India’s Rupee changed course to end Monday trading marginally stronger, as importer buying interest rose as the currency reached its highest levels since the beginning of May earlier in the session.

The Rupee closed at 81.9575 per Dollar, compared to the previous session’s close of 82.0375. The currency increased to a high of 81.76 earlier, the strongest since 8th May.

There was a level of bargain hunting from importers as the Dollar edged down under 81.80 Rupee levels, according to a research analyst at HDFC Securities, Dilip Parmar, who added that the pair might consolidate between 82.30 and 81.60.

Traders stated there was strong Dollar-buying interest around the 81.80 mark, yet there was also speculation that the central bank could have intervened to buy the Dollar.

In June, the Rupee had risen 0.77%, the highest since the 1.19% growth in January, predominantly boosted by inflows into equities, Reuters news agency reports.

“We see continued inflows into Indian financial markets and Dollar selling pressure from market forces to sustain,” Almus Risk Consulting stated.

In addition, one-year Dollar forward premiums declined to 1.66% on Monday, levels not seen since December last year, tracking a rise in US yields.

The Dollar index – measuring the currency against six rivals – increased 0.2% to 103.17, with investors remaining focused this week on the minutes of the Federal Reserve’s June meeting to be published on Wednesday.

The US central bank has indicated borrowing costs may still need to increase by as much as half a percentage point by the end of 2023, the Reuters report adds.

Markets are pricing in a 90% chance the Federal Reserve will increase rates by 25 basis points at its meeting this month, according to data from the CME FedWatch tool.