Rupee falls 11 paise to 85.75 against US dollar in early trade

The rupee dropped 11 paise to 85.75 against the US dollar in early trade on Thursday, weighed down by the significant uptrend in the dollar index and US 10-year bond yields.

Forex traders said the dollar gained against most currencies during the year 2024 and continued to remain on a strong footing this year. Moreover, persistent foreign fund outflows further dented investors' sentiments.

Additionally, global markets are expected to see low volumes as the holiday season is underway in major economies like the UK and Europe.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 85.69 then fell further to 85.75 against the American currency, registering a fall of 11 paise over its previous close.

On Wednesday, the rupee settled flat at 85.64 against the US dollar.

On December 27, the local currency touched its lifetime intraday low of 85.80 against the greenback.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was at 108.32, down 0.15%. The US dollar index has stayed well supported, consolidating around 108 mark over the last few sessions.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was quoted 0.44% higher at USD 74.97 per barrel in futures trade.

In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex was trading 270.48 points or 0.34% up at 78,777.89 points in morning trade, while Nifty was higher by 85.15 points or 0.36% to 23,828.05 points.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded ₹1,782.71 crore in the capital markets on net basis on Wednesday, according to exchange data.

On the domestic macroeconomic front, the total gross Goods and Services Tax (GST) revenue grew 7.3% to ₹1.77 lakh crore in December as compared to ₹1.65 lakh crore in the same month a year ago.

In November, GST mop-up was ₹1.82 lakh crore with 8.5% annual growth. The highest-ever collection was in April 2024 at over ₹2.10 lakh crore.