Rising for the second straight session, the rupee surged 21 paise to close at 87.87 (provisional) against the US dollar on Thursday, buoyed by a softer American currency against major currencies and renewed risk-on sentiment among investors. At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened below the 88-mark at 87.76 against the greenback, and touched an intraday high of 87.68 per dollar. The domestic unit finally settled at 87.87 (provisional) against the greenback, registering a rise of 21 paise over its previous close. Indian shares rallied on Thursday after reports suggested that talks on a bilateral trade agreement between India and the United States have picked up pace. The benchmark BSE Sensex jumped 862.23 points, or 1.04 percent, to 83,467.66, fueled by optimism over a domestic earnings' rebound and fresh foreign capital inflows. The broader NSE Nifty index soared 261.75 points, or 1.03 percent, to 25,585.30.