Rupee falls 7 paise to close at 81.81 against US dollar

MUMBAI: The rupee depreciated 7 paise to close at 81.81 (provisional) against the US dollar on Monday, tracking the strength of the American currency in the overseas markets and a muted trend in domestic equities.

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 81.84 and later witnessed an intraday high of 81.74 and a low of 81.91 during the session.

The domestic unit finally settled at 81.81 against the American currency, registering a fall of 7 paise over its last close.

On Friday, the rupee depreciated 10 paise to close at 81.74 against the US currency.

The rupee depreciated on weak domestic markets and a strong dollar. FII outflows put downside pressure on the rupee, said Anuj Choudhary - Research Analyst at Sharekhan by BNP Paribas.

The US dollar gained amid hawkish tone by most Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) members and concerns over rising COVID-19 cases in China, which dimmed hopes of reopening in China.

Economic data from the US remained mixed. The US existing home sales declined to 4.43 million in October from 4.71 million in September but topped estimates of 4.41 million.

"We expect the rupee to trade with a negative bias on strength in the US Dollar amid risk aversion in global markets. However, weak crude oil prices may support the rupee at lower levels. Traders may remain cautious ahead of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting minutes later this week," Choudhary said.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, rose 0.83 per cent to 107.81.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude futures declined 0.76 per cent to USD 86.95 per barrel.

On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share BSE Sensex fell 518.64 points or 0.84 per cent to end at 61,144.84, while the broader NSE Nifty declined 147.70 points or 0.81 per cent to 18,159.95.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers in capital markets as they offloaded shares worth Rs 751.20 crore on Friday, according to exchange data.

Meanwhile, India's foreign exchange reserves rose by USD 14.72 billion to reach USD 544.72 billion for the week to November 11, making it the steepest accretion since August 2021.