The Rupee closed strong as the pre-open push from the Reserve Bank of India helped the rupee start on a firmer footing on Friday, although importer hedging and a weak tone across Asia tempered the support. The rupee was last quoted at 87.8550 against the U.S. dollar, having hit an intraday high of 87.75. The currency had briefly weakened past 88.00 mark in pre-open trade ahead of the Indian central bank's likely U.S. dollar sales through state-run banks. The rupee has rallied more than 1% in the last two sessions, in what is being seen a deliberate attempt by the RBI to push the currency pair down. The central bank is estimated to have sold $3 billion to $5 billion in spot and non-deliverable forward markets to support the rupee on Wednesday, marking its largest intervention in months, according to traders. The U.S. dollar was set for a weekly loss against major currencies on Friday, as concern about trade tensions and signs of growing risk in regional American banks drove investors into safe-haven currencies like the Swiss franc and the yen. The U.S. federal government shutdown has also choked off the release of key macroeconomic data, leaving investors with less certainty than usual about what is happening in the economy. U.S. President Donald Trump said his proposed 100% tariff on goods from China would not be sustainable, but blamed Beijing for the latest impasse in trade talks that began with Chinese authorities tightening control over rare earth exports. Trump also confirmed he would meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping in two weeks in South Korea in an attempt to ease trade tensions. The U.S. dollar fell to its weakest level against the Swiss franc in a month while the yen erased earlier gains following Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda's discussion of factors that could lead to a rate increase this month. The dollar fell 0.1% to 0.792 against the Swiss franc , dropping to its lowest level since mid-September and was set for the biggest weekly loss since June. Fed Governor Christopher Waller said he is on board for another interest rate cut at the U.S. central bank's meeting later this month because of the mixed readings on the state of the job market. The euro was down 0.22% at $1.1661. It was on course for its biggest weekly gain against the dollar in nine weeks. The dollar index , which tracks the U.S. currency against six of its counterparts, headed for a 0.44% slide this week, although it was up 0.26% on the day to 98.51. Japan's lower house scheduling committee board has agreed to hold a parlimentary vote to select the next prime minister on October 21. Against the Japanese yen , the U.S. dollar was flat at 150.44, on track to notch a weekly loss. Meanwhile, BOJ Governor Ueda said in Washington on Thursday that the central bank remains ready to increase its key policy rate if the likelihood of its growth and price forecasts materializing increases. Sterling was down 0.2% at $1.3401, heading for a weekly gain. Oil prices were slightly higher on Friday, but heading for a weekly loss of nearly 3% after the IEA forecast a growing glut and U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to meet again to discuss Ukraine. Brent crude futures rose 10 cents, or 0.16%, to $61.16 a barrel at 11:17 a.m. CDT (1617 GMT), while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures were also up 10 cents, or 0.17%, at $57.56.......