Rupee rises 11 paise to 82.20 against US dollar in early trade

Mumbai: The rupee gained 11 paise to 82.20 against the US dollar in early trade on Tuesday supported by sustained foreign fund inflows.

Forex traders said a weak trend in domestic equities and strength of the American currency in the overseas market weighed on investor sentiments.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit opened at 82.22 against the dollar and then rose to 82.20, registering a gain of 11 paise over its previous close.

On Monday, the rupee closed at 82.31 against the US currency.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.06 per cent to 102.37.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, declined 0.51 per cent to USD 75.61 per barrel.

"Going further, rising oil prices could remain a concern for the local unit as the US begins refilling its strategic reserve and has confirmed purchasing up to 3 million barrels of oil for the SPR," CR Forex Advisors MD-Amit Pabari said.

"Rising USD and oil, and weakening EM peer currencies make clear room for the USD-INR pair to move above 82.50 – 82.80 levels in the next 15-20 sessions," Pabari added.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net buyers in the capital market on Monday as they purchased shares worth Rs 1,685.29 crore, according to exchange data.

In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex declined 19.76 points or 0.03 per cent to 62,325.95. The broader NSE Nifty fell 1.55 points or 0.01 per cent to 18,397.30.

Meanwhile, India's exports contracted by 12.7 per cent, for the third month in a row, to USD 34.66 billion in April even as the trade deficit reduced to a 20-month low of USD 15.24 billion, the government data showed on Monday.