Rupee slips 19 paise to 69.45 vs USD in early trade ahead of RBI policy outcome

The rupee opened on a weak note and declined by 19 paise to 69.45 against the US dollar in opening trade Thursday, ahead of the Reserve Bank of India's monetary policy decision.

Forex traders said, foreign fund outflows and rising crude oil prices also kept pressure on the Indian rupee.

The RBI's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is slated to announce its bi-monthly policy decision later in the day.

The rupee opened weak at 69.41 at the interbank forex market and then fell further to 69.45, down 19 paise over its last close.

The rupee had settled at 69.26 against the US dollar Tuesday.

Indian bonds and Forex markets were closed Wednesday on account of Id-Ul-Fitr.

Forex traders said a cautious opening in domestic equities weighed on the local unit.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.25 per cent to USD 60.78 per barrel.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) remained net sellers in the capital markets, pulling out Rs 416.08 crore Tuesday, as per provisional data.

Domestic bourses opened on a cautious note Thursday with benchmark indices Sensex trading 85.04 points down at 39,998.50 and Nifty down 42.60 points at 11,979.05.