Rupee fails to shake off 82.80/USD; US inflation, RBI policy awaited

MUMBAI, Aug 9 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee was trading flat on Wednesday amid limited risk appetite and mixed Asian cues and ahead of U.S. inflation data and the Reserve Bank of Indias (RBI) policy decision.

The rupee was at 82.8150 against the dollar by 10:40 a.m. IST, barely changing from the previous session. The currency was stuck in a narrow range around 82.80 on Tuesday as well.

Oil companies bought the dollar at around the current levels, a foreign exchange trader at a state run bank said, before adding it was likely to be another quiet day.

“The market does not have any triggers,” said Anindya Banerjee, head of FX and interest rate research at Kotak Securities. Importers and exporters are not hedging and large speculators are relatively quiet, Banerjee said.

Investors will be eyeing the RBIs monetary policy decision and the release of U.S. consumer inflation figures on Thursday.

While the RBI is expected to deliver a hawkish hold on rates, inflation numbers in the US - whether below, or above expectations - could give directional cues to what has been a lacklustre market for the USD/INR.