Rupee slips below 75/USD level in early trade

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.04 per cent to 91.12.

Mumbai: The rupee opened on a weak note and fell below the 75 per US dollar level in early trade on Thursday as investors fretted over the prospects of stricter lockdown in some parts of the country amid a surge in COVID-19 cases.

Moreover, foreign fund outflows, and heavy selling in domestic equities weighed on the domestic currency.

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At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 75.25 then lost further ground and fell to 75.26 against the US dollar, showing a decline of 38 paise over its previous closing.

The Indian rupee on Tuesday had closed at 74.88 against the US dollar.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.04 per cent to 91.12.

Forex and equity markets were closed on Wednesday on account of ‘Ram Navami’.

The rupee started on a weaker note against the US dollar as stricter restrictions in Maharashtra to curb the spread of the virus could hamper the recovery of the economy from the pandemic, Reliance Securities said in a research note.

The weakness in the local unit could continue through the session weighed down by another round of dollar bids by speculators and importers, the note said adding that “RBI could be present to curb volatility in the markets.”

Meanwhile, Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, fell 0.46 per cent to USD 65.02 per barrel.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) remained net sellers in the capital markets, pulling out Rs 1,082.33 crore on Tuesday, as per provisional data.

Domestic bourses were trading on a lacklustre note with benchmark indices Sensex trading 196.98 points down at 47,508.82 and Nifty down 49.75 points at 14,246.65.

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