Rupee rises by 18 paise to 48.45/$ in opening trade

The Indian rupee strengthened by 18 paise against the US currency in the opening trade today as exporters sold the dollar, which weakened against major currencies.

At the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market, the domestic unit appreciated by 18 paise to 48.45 a dollar. Yesterday, the rupee closed 9 paise higher at 48.6350/6450.

Dealers said dollar selling by exporters and expectations of more capital inflows into equity markets in line with firming trends on other Asian markets, which were up by 1.64 per cent in the morning trade, mainly boosted the rupee sentiment.

The dollar fell against other currencies which also supported the Indian rupee.