Mumbai: The rupee depreciated by 16 paise to 75.07 against the US dollar in opening trade Thursday, as investor concerns grew over the fresh impact of the new COVID variant on the economy.
Besides, unabated foreign fund outflows also weighed on investor sentiments, traders said.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened weak at 75.06 and lost further ground to quote 75.07 against the American dollar, registering a decline of 16 paise from the last close.
On Wednesday, the rupee had settled at 74.91 against the greenback.
The rupee has been under pressure over the last few trading sessions, as investor concern has resurfaced about how much damage the new Omicron coronavirus variant may unleash on the economy, traders said.
The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, fell by 0.01 per cent to 96.01.
Meanwhile, global oil benchmark Brent crude futures advanced by 1.28 per cent to USD 69.75 per barrel.
Foreign institutional investors were net sellers in the capital market Wednesday, as they offloaded shares worth Rs 2,765.84 crore, as per exchange data.
On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share Sensex was trading 400.7 points or 0.69 per cent higher at 58,085.49, while the broader NSE Nifty advanced 111.75 points or 0.65 per cent to 17,278.65.
