Rupee Falls 5 Paise to Close at 83.56 Against US Dollar

Mumbai, Jul 11 (PTI) The rupee settled for the day 5 paise lower at 83.56 (provisional) against the US dollar on Thursday, weighed down by a weak tone in domestic markets and a recovery in crude oil prices.

Forex traders said rupee traded with a slight negative bias on profit booking in the domestic market, which may result in foreign fund outflows.

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 83.49, but lost ground and touched an intraday low of 83.59 against the American currency during the session.

It finally settled at 83.56 (provisional) against the dollar, 5 paisa lower than its previous close.

On Wednesday, the rupee stayed range-bound and settled 2 paise lower at 83.51 against the US dollar.

"Elevated crude oil prices may also weigh on the rupee. However, soft US Dollar and positive Asian currencies may support the rupee at lower levels. Traders may take cues from inflation and weekly unemployment claims data from the US. USDINR spot price is expected to trade in a range of Rs 83.35 to Rs 83.80," said Anuj Choudhary -- Research Analyst at Sharekhan by BNP Paribas.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.16 per cent lower at 104.87.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, were trading 0.24 per cent higher at USD 85.28 per barrel.

In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex ended the day 27.43 points, or 0.03 per cent, lower at 79,897.34 points. The broader NSE Nifty settled 8.50 points, or 0.03 per cent, down at 24,315.95 points.

"The domestic indices fell for the second consecutive session after hitting record highs on Tuesday. However, FII inflows and a soft tone in the US Dollar cushioned the downside," Choudhary said.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net buyers in the capital markets on Wednesday, as they purchased shares worth Rs 583.96 crore, according to exchange data.