INDIA RUPEE-Rupee nudges higher; familiar resistance, support levels tipped to hold

By Jaspreet Kalra

MUMBAI, July 10 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee ticked up on Thursday, tracking regional peers higher, as a fresh round of tariff threats from the White House did little to move the needle for markets with traders expecting the local unit to stick to its familiar range in the near-term.

The rupee INR=IN was at 85.59 as of 12:20 p.m. IST, up 0.1% from its previous close of 85.6725.

Traders reckon that the rupee may hover between 85.40 and 86, a range that it has settled into over the last couple of weeks, as they wait for the result of trade negotiations with the United States.

Most regional economies have received tariff letters from Trump but India's negotiations with U.S. are still ongoing. A trade delegation is expected to visit the U.S. soon for further talks, an Indian trade official said on Thursday.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced a 50% tariff on U.S. copper imports and a 50% duty on goods from Brazil, both to start on August 1.

Trump has also dispatched August 1 tariff notices to seven minor U.S. trading partners that exported only $15 billion in goods to the U.S. last year, including a 20% tariff on goods from the Philippines.

However, equity and currency markets in Asia appeared to take the latest salvos in their stride, with the MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan .MIAPJ0000PUS up 0.4%.

Asian currencies were mostly up between 0.1% to 0.4% while the dollar index steadied just shy of 97.5.

While the immediate reaction was muted, ANZ said in a note that an uncertain trade outlook and weaker growth prospects were likely to limit portfolio inflows in the Asian region in the near term.

Meanwhile, dollar-rupee forward premiums were little changed on the day, showing little support for an interest rate cut later this month, with most policymakers remaining worried about the inflationary pressures emanating from tariffs.