For the fifth straight session, the rupee posted gains and surged 11 paise against the US dollar on Wednesday, December 30, settling at 73.31, tracking bullish domestic equities and sustained inflows of foreign funds. The local unit opened at 73.35 against the dollar on the interbank foreign exchange market and reported an intra-day high of 73.26. It experienced a low of 73.36. The domestic unit climbed by nine countries to 73.33 against the greenback in the opening trade session. Finally, the rupee settled at 73.31, recording an 11-paise rise over its previous close. The local unit closed higher on Tuesday, December 29, at 73.42 against the American currency. In the last five consecutive trading sessions, the Rupee now has a total of 53 nations. A weaker American currency in the overseas markets also helped the rupee, according to forex traders. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which calculates the power of the greenback against a six-currency basket, decreased 0.21 percent to 89.80. "On the back of the US fiscal stimulus, the Brexit agreement and the coronavirus vaccine, risk sentiments are ending in 2020 after a pandemic ravaged year. However, once the global economy is able to rebound at a rapid pace once COVID-19 is defeated, the upside risk to the USDINR spot will remain intact,' said Mr. Rahul Gupta, Emkay Global Financial Services Head of Research-Currency. The fears of further lockdowns were eased with the viable vaccine's ability to combat even the transmissible form of the virus. So, what happens to the Indian rupee largely depends on how the virus is controlled by the major economies in 2021.