CURRENCY OVERVIEW

The Indian rupee opened flat at Monday's open, potentially slipping below the psychological level of 95, with an oil price overhang compounded by the likely absence ‌of last week's supportive flows. The rupee traded between 94.32 and 94.97 last week, moving toward the firmer side of the range on inflows linked to the Jio Platforms IPO and position unwinding.  The IPO attracted robust foreign institutional investor demand, with part of the associated flows likely hitting the spot market and lending support to the rupee, bankers said. The flow support seen last week will not recur, and oil remains a drag on sentiment, a currency trader at a private sector bank said. That tilts the rupee's risk balance to the ‌downside, with central bank intervention remaining the key. Dollar demand from oil refiners is not currently a direct factor for the rupee with the Reserve Bank of India's special window letting them meet their foreign-exchange requirements outside the usual market. Major currencies traded in tight ranges on Monday to begin a busy week of central bank decisions and corporate earnings, while a pullback in oil ‌prices and Treasury yields weighed on the dollar. Oil prices eased with Brent crude futures down more than 1% at around $115 a barrel after hitting a six-month high last week, following a Reuters report that Qatari mediators were in Tehran on Sunday as part of an effort to de-escalate regional tensions in coordination with the US. Meanwhile, US Treasuries largely held onto gains from a recent safe-haven rally, as elevated oil prices kept inflation worries alive and a tech-led selloff over concerns ?about AI spurred a rotation out of risk assets. Yields on US 10-year notes were last down to 4.974% while those on 30-year notes were at 5.299%, hovering near one-month lows. The euro rose 0.16% against the greenback to $1.122, aided by relief that France was spared a Moody's downgrade despite ‌social unrest. Sterling strengthened 0.1% to $1.3385. The dollar index , which measures the US currency against a basket of peers, was a shade weaker at 101.64. The Australian dollar fetched $0.7030 , down 0.04%, while the kiwi traded 0.06% stronger at $0.572 . The Japanese yen was largely steady and was last at 156.920 per dollar. Five major central banks will take centre stage later in the week, with the US Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank and the Bank of Japan expected to hold rates steady. Markets are pricing in potential hikes from the Bank of Canada and the Reserve Bank of New Zealand. Elsewhere, gold was slightly lower; spot gold traded at $3,986.16 per ounce.  Oil prices fell on Monday after surging to near six-month highs late last week, although ongoing attacks on ‌Saudi Arabia kept supply concerns in focus. US crude futures were down $2.14, or 2.07%, at $101.13 per barrel by 0232 GMT. Brent crude futures were down $2.12, or 1.82%, at $114.60.