Rupee falls 10 paise to close at 82.85 against US dollar

MUMBAI: The rupee depreciated by 10 paise to close at 82.85 (provisional) against the US currency on Monday as a stronger dollar in the overseas market and a muted trend in domestic equities weighed on investor sentiments.

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 82.87 against the greenback and closed at 82.85 (provisional), registering a fall of 10 paise over its previous close of 82.75.

During the session, the domestic unit witnessed an intra-day high of 82.82 and a low of 82.94 against the American dollar.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading marginally lower at 105.15.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude futures advanced 0.46 per cent to USD 83.54 per barrel.

The Indian rupee depreciated on weak domestic markets and a strong greenback. Surge in crude oil prices and FII outflows also weighed on rupee, said Anuj Choudhary - Research Analyst at Sharekhan by BNP Paribas.

Dollar strengthened on concerns over higher interest rates for longer amid higher inflation and upbeat economic data from the US, Choudhary added.

"We expect the rupee to trade with a negative bias on risk aversion in global markets and positive greenback. Month-end Dollar demand from importers may weigh on Rupee. However, any intervention by the Reserve Bank of India may prevent sharp fall in Rupee," Choudhary said.

The 30-share BSE Sensex ended 175.58 points or 0.30 per cent lower at 59,288.35, while the broader NSE Nifty declined 73.10 points or 0.42 per cent to 17,392.70.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital markets on Friday as they offloaded shares worth Rs 1,470.34 crore, according to exchange data.

On the domestic macroeconomic front, India's forex reserves dropped by USD 5.681 billion to USD 561.267 billion in the week ended February 17, the RBI said on Friday.