Rupee slips 13 paise to 71.11 against US dollar in early trade

The rupee opened on a weak note and fell 13 paise to 71.11 against the US dollar in early trade on Wednesday amid strengthening of the US dollar against other currencies overseas.

Forex traders said muted opening of domestic equities weighed on the local unit.

At the Interbank Foreign Exchange, the rupee opened weak at 71.08 then fell to 71.11 against the US dollar, showing a decline of 13 paise over its previous closing.

The local unit on Tuesday had closed at 70.98 against the greenback.

Traders said foreign fund inflows and easing crude oil prices capped the losses of the local unit.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, fell 0.53 per cent to USD 65.75 per barrel.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) remained net buyers in the capital markets, as they purchased shares worth Rs 1,248.47 crore on Tuesday, as per provisional data.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, rose 0.10 per cent to 97.32.

Domestic bourses turned cautious on Wednesday with benchmark indices Sensex trading 25.84 points up at 41,378.01 and Nifty up by 10.85 points at 12,175.85.

The 10-year government bond yield was at 6.75 per cent in morning trade.