The rupee began the New Year on a sour note, falling 14 paise to close at 82.75 (provisional) against the US dollar on Monday, as rising crude oil prices and persistent foreign fund outflows dampened investor sentiment.
Forex traders said that the support from strong domestic equities and a weak US dollar was offset by higher crude oil prices and continued foreign fund outflows.
The rupee opened lower at 82.66 against the US dollar on the interbank foreign exchange market, with an intraday high of 82.56 and a low of 82.78.
It eventually settled at 82.75, 14 paise lower than its previous close.
The rupee had settled at 82.61 on the last trading day of 2022.
“The Indian rupee started the first trading day of the new year with a small loss as many markets remained closed on account of the New year Holiday.
The dollar index, which measures the strength of the greenback against a basket of six currencies, was 0.30 percent lower at 103.52.
Brent crude futures rose 2.94 percent to USD 85.91 per barrel, the global oil benchmark.
The 30-share BSE Sensex finished 327.05 points or 0.54 percent higher at 61,167.79, while the NSE Nifty gained 92.15 points or 0.51 percent to 18,197.45.
According to stock exchange data, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) continued to be net sellers in the capital market on Friday, offloading shares worth Rs 2,950.89 crore.
Source:FE