Rupee falls 1 paisa to 83.15 against U.S. dollar in early trade

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The rupee slipped 1 paisa to 83.15 against the U.S. dollar in early trade on Thursday amid rising crude oil prices and withdrawal of foreign funds.

Despite a weak American currency against major overseas rivals, negative sentiment in domestic equity markets kept the Indian currency under pressure, forex traders said.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic currency opened at 83.16 and inched up to 83.15 against the greenback in morning deals and traded at a loss of 1 paisa over its previous close.

On January 17, the rupee settled 2 paise lower at 83.14 against the U.S dollar.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.16% lower at 103.04 on January 18.

Analysts said the dollar retreated after the U.S. data released on January 17 showed more than expected increase in retail sales, dashing the financial market’s hope of an interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, went up 0.24% to $78.07 per barrel.

In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex was trading 381.69 points, or 0.53%, lower at 71,119.07. The broader NSE Nifty declined 131.35 points, or 0.61%, to 21,440.60.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the equity market on January 17 as they sold shares worth ₹10,578.13 crore, according to exchange data.