Rupee Rises 2 Paise to 89.20 Against US Dollar in Early Trade

The rupee pared initial losses and strengthened 2 paise to 89.20 against the US dollar in early trade on Wednesday tracking a weak greenback and firm domestic equity market sentiment.

According to forex traders, some inflow of foreign capital into domestic stock markets also supported the Indian currency even though rising crude oil prices kept it under pressure.

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 89.24, lost to 89.26 and then regained to trade at 89.20 against the greenback in initial deals, up 2 paise from its previous closing level.

The rupee settled 6 paise lower at 89.22 against the greenback on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was lower by 0.02% at 99.56.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.40% to $62.70 per barrel in futures trade.

On the domestic equity market front, the Sensex climbed 171.19 points or 0.20% to 84,758.20 in early trade while Nifty rose 73.20 points or 0.28% to 25,958.00.

Foreign institutional investors purchased equities worth ₹785.32 crore on a net basis on Tuesday, according to exchange data.