Rupee falls 9 paise to ₹85.67 against US dollar in early trade

The rupee depreciated 9 paise to ₹85.67 against the American currency in early trade on Wednesday, as market sentiment soured under pressure from rising US Treasury yields and persistent foreign fund outflows.

Forex traders said global crude oil prices intensified the downside pressure on the USD/INR pair.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit opened at ₹85.65 and fell to ₹85.67 against the greenback, registering a loss of 9 paise over its previous close.

On Tuesday, the rupee depreciated 16 paise to close at ₹85.58 against the US dollar.

The rupee fell on Tuesday as oil companies bought dollars to refill strategic reserves amid geo-political turmoil. FPIs were also sellers to the extent of ₹10,000 crore, which could be mainly on account of the Airtel Singtel deal, said Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth ₹10,016.10 crore on a net basis on Tuesday, according to exchange data.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading lower by 0.47% at 99.65, on poor fiscal prudence and weak economic outlook.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 1.47% to USD 66.34 per barrel in futures trade.

In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex advanced 201.89 points, or 0.25%, to 81,388.33, while the Nifty rose 44.15 points, or 0.18%, to 24,728.05.