MUMBAI, March 1 Reuters The Indian rupee gained on Friday, aided by the strength of its Asian peers, positive market sentiment following a surprise surge in domestic GDP data and dollar sales by foreign banks, traders said.

The rupee was at 82.8550 against the U.S. dollar as of 1045 a.m. IST, marking a 0.07 increase from its previous session close at 82.9125.

The dollar index was at 104.1 after logging a rise of 0.2 increase on Thursday. Most Asian currencies saw a slight uptick, with the Philippine peso leading the gains, rising 0.3.

The dollarrupee pair was welloffered, with foreign banks dominating dollar sales in early trading, a foreign exchange trader at a private bank said.

India39;s GDP growth in the OctoberDecember quarter far exceeded expectations, with the economy expanding by 8.4, against the 6.6 anticipated by economists polled by Reuters.

The surprise jump in GDP data alongside an inline U.S. inflation figures further bolstered market sentiment, potentially supporting an upside for the rupee.

The positive bias on the rupee persists, though the extent of appreciation will depend on how much the Reserve Bank of India allows the currency to gain, Anindya Banerjee, head of foreign exchange research at Kotak Securities, said.

The RBI has likely been buying dollars on days with substantial inflows, limiting the rupee39;s upside, traders said.

The U.S. personal consumption expenditures PCE price index rose 0.3 monthonmonth in January, data released on…