Rupee slips 1 paisa to 90.67 against US dollar in early trade

The rupee slipped marginally against the US dollar in early trade on Monday amid foreign fund outflows, a stronger greenback and falling forex reserves. Traders said global cues and upcoming trade data will guide the currency’s movement.

Mumbai: The rupee slipped by 1 paisa to 90.67 against the US dollar in the early session on Monday amid FII outflows and a stronger greenback.

A marginal rise in global crude oil prices and a sharp decline in the country’s forex reserves also weighed on the local unit, according to forex traders.

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At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened higher at 90.63 before falling to 90.67 against the US dollar, down 1 paisa from its previous close.

The rupee consolidated in a narrow range and settled 5 paise lower at 90.66 against the US dollar on Friday.

“The rupee opened slightly stronger from Friday close and should remain in a small range on a day when cash demand will be lower due to US Presidential Day holiday,” Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director, Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP, said.

Markets will watch out for India’s trade balance figures, which could be released by the commerce ministry on Monday, he said.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.02 per cent higher at 96.93.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading 0.04 per cent higher at USD 67.78 per barrel in futures trade.

At the domestic equity markets, Sensex declined 71.53 points to 82,555.23 in early trade while Nifty was down 11.95 points to 25,459.15.

On Friday, foreign institutional investors offloaded equities worth Rs 7,395.41 crore, according to exchange data.

Reserve Bank data released on Friday showed India’s forex reserves were down USD 6.711 billion to USD 717.064 billion during the week ended February 6. In the previous reporting week, the kitty had jumped by USD 14.361 billion to an all-time high of USD 723.774 billion.