Mumbai: The rupee depreciated by 4 paise to close at 81.94 against the US dollar on Monday amid strong American currency against major rivals overseas and a weak trend in domestic equities.
However, a downward trend in crude price capped the fall in the domestic unit, forex traders said.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit opened lower at 81.93 and moved in the range of 82.01 to 81.90 during intra-day.
The unit settled at 81.94 against the US dollar, reflecting a loss of 4 paise over the previous close.
On Friday, the rupee settled at 81.90 against the dollar.
“The lack of a clear trend in the dollar and limited data on the first day of the week resulted in a sideways movement for the rupee,” Jateen Trivedi, VP Research analyst at LKP Securities, said.
“The stable crude oil prices further contributed to the rupee’s sideways movement. Mixed data from FIIs and DIIs also ensured that the rupee lacked momentum today. As a result, the expected range for the rupee remains between 81.60 and 82.15,” Trivedi added.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was up 0.29 percent at 102.54.
Crude oil prices were trading lower, with the benchmark Brent crude slipping 0.16 percent to USD 76.49 per barrel.
“The Indian rupee has been exhibiting strength recently, supported by strong FII inflows and favourable domestic macroeconomic data,” said Vinod Nair, Head of Research at Geojit Financial Services.
In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex declined 216.28 points or 0.34 percent to settle at 63,168.30, while broader NSE Nifty fell 70.55 points or 0.37 percent to close at 18,755.45.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital markets on Monday as they sold shares worth Rs 1,030.90 crore, according to exchange data.
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