The Indian rupee gained momentum in opening trades on Thursday, extending previous day gains tracking optimism from global equities and easing international oil prices. Asian markets are trading mostly higher on Thursday, following the mixed cues from Wall Street overnight, amid hopes a fresh round of negotiations between Iran and the U.S. this week will help resolve the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. The continuing drop in crude oil prices amid hopes of the potential opening of the Strait of Hormuz also aided market sentiment. However, sustained dollar demand from importers, particularly oil marketing companies, are likely to cap the appreciation. INR opened at Rs 93.29 per dollar and hit a high of 93.24 so far during the day. Yesterday the counter settled at 93.33.