Re snaps 2-day loss as oil prices ease

The rupee gained the most in more than a week, snapping a two-day loss, as a decline in oil prices tempered concern a surge in energy costs will slow the global economy.

The rupee strengthened 0.2% to 45.005 per dollar in Wednesday's trade in Mumbai, paring its loss this year to 0.7%.

Crude oil retreated from a 29-month high and the MSCI Asia- Pacific Index of regional shares rose for the first day this week. Overseas investors bought $306 million more Indian equities than they sold this month as of March 7, according to exchange data.

"The decline in oil prices is positive for the rupee," said Thio Chin Loo, a senior currency analyst at BNP Paribas SA in Singapore. "The stocks are a bit supportive." Thio said the rupee will trade between 44.50 and 46 for the next month.

Members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries are considering an urgent meeting to determine whether more output is needed, Kuwait's oil minister Sheikh Ahmad al- Abdullah al-Sabah said on Tuesday.

Offshore forwards indicate the rupee will trade at 45.74 in three months, compared with expectations for a rate of 45.88 on Tuesday. Forwards are agreements to buy or sell assets at a set price and date. Non-deliverable contracts are settled in dollars.