Symbolic picture only. , Photo credit: The Hindu
The rupee depreciated six paise to 82.01 against the US dollar in early trade on April 26, weighed down by foreign fund outflows and a negative trend in domestic equities.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit opened weak at 82.00 against the dollar, then declined to 82.01, registering a decline of six paise over its previous close. On Tuesday, the rupee had closed at 81.95 against the dollar.
The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.04% to 101.82. Global oil benchmark Brent crude futures rose 0.37% to $81.07 a barrel.
“The undercurrent of growing chaos on the global front amid geopolitical concerns and sudden changes in on and off mode are not healthy for the currency. However, in the near term perspective, the pair is squeezed between 81.80. -82.20, and A push above 82.20 is needed to take the pair towards 82.50-82.80 levels,” said Amit Pabari, MD, CR Forex Advisors.
In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex was trading 157.29 points or 0.26% lower at 59,973.42. The broader NSE Nifty fell 50.30 points, or 0.28%, to 17,718.95. Foreign institutional investors were net sellers in the capital market on April 25 as they sold shares worth ₹407.35 crore, according to exchange data.