Rupee declines 13 paise against US dollar in early trade

The rupee opened 13 paise lower at 68.99 against the US dollar on Wednesday amid mixed global cues. On Tuesday, the domestic unit appreciated by 10 paise to end at 68.86 following a robust response to RBI's maiden rupee-dollar swap auction.

Sustained foreign fund inflows and heavy buying in domestic equities also propped up the local unit, forex traders said.

The RBI infused Rs 34,561 crore into the banking system in exchange for dollars, in its first dollar-rupee swap auction. Through the auction, RBI bought dollars totalling $5.02 billion at a premium of Rs 7.76, which works out to an