Rupee Falls 16 Paise to 86.87 vs US Dollar

Mumbai, Feb 17 (PTI) The rupee depreciated 16 paise to close at 86.87 (provisional) against the US dollar on Monday, weighed down by significant foreign fund outflows and a recovery in the US dollar index from intraday lows.

Forex traders said the Indian rupee is trading with a negative bias as foreign banks went on a dollar-buying spree and importers scrambled to secure dollars, as they feared further depreciation amid global uncertainty.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 86.70 and touched the high of 86.68 against the greenback during intraday. It also touched the low of 86.88 before ending the session at 86.87 (provisional) against the dollar, logging a loss of 16 paise from its previous close.

On Friday, the rupee extended its recovery and settled 21 paise higher at 86.71 against the US dollar.

"Indian rupee declined today on a weak tone in the domestic markets and a recovery in the US dollar index from intraday lows. However, weak tone in crude oil prices and a decline in US treasury yields cushioned the downside," said Anuj Choudhary – Research Analyst at Mirae Asset Sharekhan.

Traders may take cues from speeches by Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) members.

"We expect the rupee to trade with negative bias amid weakness in the domestic equities and FII outflows. Overall strength in the US dollar may also weigh on the rupee. However, any further decline in the US treasury yields or any further intervention by the RBI may support the rupee at lower levels," Choudhary added.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.14 per cent higher at 106.85.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.12 per cent to USD 74.83 per barrel in futures trade.

In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex advanced 57.65 points, or 0.08 per cent, to settle at 75,996.86, while the Nifty rose 30.25 points, or 0.13 per cent, to 22,959.50 points.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 4,294.69 crore in the capital markets on a net basis on Friday, according to exchange data.

Meanwhile, India's forex reserves jumped by USD 7.654 billion to USD 638.261 billion in the week ended February 7, the RBI said on Friday.

This is the third consecutive week of a jump in the kitty, which had increased by USD 1.05 billion to USD 630.607 billion for the week ended January 31.