The rupee rose 16 paise to 79.65 against the US dollar in opening trade on Tuesday, after a strong trend in domestic equities.

The local unit began at 79.70 versus the dollar on the interbank foreign exchange, then fell to 79.65, a 16-paise gain from its previous close. The rupee fell 3 paise to 79.81 against the dollar on Monday.

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The dollar index, which measures the strength of the US currency against a basket of six currencies, declined 0.15% to 109.57.

The global oil benchmark, Brent crude futures, climbed 0.11% to USD 92.10 per barrel.

“Markets were awaiting the US Fed’s decision as the two-day meeting starts on Tuesday. A few players expected the US FED to not sound too hawkish lest it hampers the US growth expectations,” said Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury, Finrex Treasury Advisors.

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The Reserve Bank of India‘s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) will meet from September 28 to 30, with the decision announced on the final day.

The rupee is projected to trade in the region of 79.50-79.90, with risks balanced, according to Bhansali.

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 The Sensex was trading 627.68 points, or 1.06%, higher at 59,768.91 in the domestic equity market. Similarly, the Nifty advanced 190.80 points, or 1.08%, to 17,813.05.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have bought shares worth a net Rs 312.31 crore, whereas domestic institutional investors (DIIs) sold shares worth a net Rs 94.68 crore on September 19, as per provisional data available on the NSE.

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The euro was barely changed at $1.00235, after steadily rising during the previous week and consolidating its position over parity. On September 6, it fell to $0.9864 for the first time in over two decades.

Sterling was marginally lower at $1.14245, recovering from a 37-year low of $1.13510 at the end of last week.