Heightened geopolitical tensions and worsening trade uncertainties led to a further depreciation of the rupee in early trade on Tuesday, with the domestic unit opening at 90.24 against the greenback, and then registering a loss of 5 paises from its previous closing level.
The rupee was at 90.22 against the US dollar during morning trade even as the American currency showed signs of strengthening, with higher crude oil prices and incessant outflow of foreign funds further denting the rupee’s value.
Foreign institutional investors offloaded equities worth ₹3,638.40 crore on Monday, according to exchange data. Analysts said accelerated dollar demand worldwide are putting pressure on the Indian currency.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 90.24 and gained slightly to trade at 90.22 against the greenback in early deals, registering a loss of 5 paise from its previous closing level. On Monday, it had ended 1 paisa higher at 90.17 against the US dollar.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which measures the strength of the greenback against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.11 per cent higher at 98.73.
Also Read: Dip in global crude oil prices helps rupee rise 18 paise
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading 0.28 per cent higher at USD 64.05 per barrel in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share benchmark index Sensex rose 125.96 points or 0.15 per cent to 84,004.13, while the Nifty advanced 47.25 points or 0.18 per cent to 25,837.50 due to buying in equities triggered by strong domestic macroeconomic numbers.
According to government data released on Monday, India’s retail inflation rose to a three-month high of 1.33 per cent in December, mainly due to higher prices of food items, but remained below the Reserve Bank of India’s lower tolerance level.
Also, the latest data from the Income Tax Department showed the government’s net direct tax collection grew about 8.82 per cent to over ₹18.38 lakh crore in the current fiscal till January 11 due to slower refunds and better corporate tax mop-up. Net corporate tax collection grew 12.4 per cent to over ₹8.63 lakh crore, and taxes from non-corporates, including individuals, rose 6.39 per cent to about ₹9.30 lakh crore.
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