Ella 
The Indian rupee (INR) lost momentum on Friday. The pair’s gains were boosted by better U.S. producer price index (PPI) data for February. In addition, weaker-than-expected Indian wholesale price index (WPI) also caused some selling pressure on the Indian rupee, which was beneficial for the currency pair. India’s wholesale inflation fell to a four-month low in February, data from the Statistics Department showed on Thursday. The report may serve as a basis for monetary policy actions by the Reserve Bank of India.
However, the market expects the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to keep interest rates stable at its next meeting and may cut the repo rate in the second half of calendar year 2024. The Reserve Bank of India is unlikely to enter a rate-cutting cycle before the Fed. This, in turn, could boost the Indian rupee, limiting the pair’s upside. Next, investors will pay close attention to India’s trade balance data released on Friday. In addition, preliminary values for U.S. industrial production and the University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index will also be released later in the day.
