Rupee slips 5 paise to 82.75 against US dollar in early trade

Mumbai, Dec 21 (PTI) The rupee depreciated 5 paise to 82.75 against the US dollar in early trade on Wednesday as the strengthening of the American currency against key rivals overseas and firm crude prices in global markets weighed on the local unit.

However, a higher opening in domestic equities supported the local currency and capped the losses, forex traders said.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit opened weak at 82.76 against the dollar, then inched higher to 82.75, registering a decline of 5 paise over its last close.

In the previous session on Tuesday, the rupee settled 8 paise lower at 82.70 against the US dollar.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, rose 0.10 per cent to 104.07.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, advanced 0.39 per cent to USD 80.30 per barrel.

In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex was trading 255.63 points or 0.41 per cent higher at 61,957.92. The broader NSE Nifty rose 67.15 points or 0.37 per cent to 18,452.45.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) turned net buyers in the capital markets on Tuesday as they purchased shares worth Rs 455.94 crore, according to exchange data.

Fitch Ratings on Tuesday affirmed India’s sovereign credit rating at ‘BBB-‘ with a stable outlook, saying the rating derives strengths from a robust growth outlook and still-resilient external finances.

The agency, however, expects a modest fiscal slippage in the current financial year with a central government fiscal deficit at 6.6 per cent of GDP, against 6.4 per cent pegged in the Budget, due to higher food and fertiliser subsidies.

Retail inflation for farm and rural workers rose to 6.87 per cent and 6.99 per cent, respectively, in November on annual basis mainly due to lower prices of certain food items.