Re 2 paise lower to 83.34/USD on FII outflows

Mumbai: The rupee slipped by 2 paise to settle at 83.34 (provisional) against the US dollar on Thursday due to FII outflows and weak local equities. Oil prices sliding more than one per cent and the US currency trading lower against its major global rivals restricted the rupee’s fall, forex dealers said. At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened higher at 83.30 against the US dollar. It later moved in a tight range of 83.29 to 83.36 in the day trade. The rupee finally closed lower by 2 paise at 83.34. The unit had closed at 83.32 on Wednesday. The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.31 per cent down at 103.60. The greenback had strengthened on Wednesday after the Fed meeting minutes suggested a hawkish tone of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC).

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, fell 1.45 per cent to $80.77 per barrel. On the domestic equity market front, Sensex slipped by 5.43 points or 0.01 per cent to close at 66,017.81 points. The Nifty50 declined 9.85 points or 0.05 per cent to settle at 19,802. Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital markets on Wednesday as they sold shares worth Rs306.56 crore, according to exchange data.