Rupee Gains 10 Paise To 74.48 Against US Dollar In Early Trade

The rupee appreciated by 10 paise to 74.48 against the US dollar in opening trade on Wednesday, tracking gains in domestic equity markets.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened strong at 74.54 against the American dollar, then inched higher to 74.48, registering a rise of 10 paise from the last close.

In the previous session, the rupee tumbled 30 paise to close at 74.58 against the US dollar.

Forex traders said growing concerns over the Omicron variant of the coronavirus and its impact on economic recovery, elevated crude oil prices and a strong greenback overseas weighed on the local unit and kept the appreciation bias limited.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading unchanged at 96.25.

Meanwhile, on the domestic equity market front, the 30-share Sensex was trading 144.01 points or 0.24 per cent higher at 59,999.94, while the broader NSE Nifty advanced 38.55 points or 0.22 per cent to 17,843.80.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude futures fell 0.22 per cent to USD 79.82 per barrel.

Foreign institutional investors were net buyers in the capital market on Tuesday, as they purchased shares worth Rs 1,273.86 crore, as per stock exchange data.