The Indian rupee depreciated by 8 paise to settle at 73.63 against the US dollar on Tuesday, taking cues from weaker Asian peers against the American currency. Besides, subdued trading in domestic equities also put pressure on the domestic currency, forex traders said.
At the interbank forex market, the domestic unit opened at 73.62 against the US dollar and witnessed an intra-day high of 73.59 and a low of 73.67. The local unit finally closed at 73.63 against the American currency, registering a fall of 8 paise over its previous close.
"The Indian rupee depreciated marginally against the dollar this Tuesday tracking weakness in most regional currencies as risk appetite waned as many countries are imposing fresh COVID-19 restrictions which could derail a global economic recovery," Sriram Iyer, Senior Research Analyst at Reliance Securities, said.
Analysts also said that investors refrained from taking large positions ahead of the Fed monetary policy decision due on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.06 per cent lower at 90.65. On the domestic equity market front, the BSE Sensex ended 9.71 points or 0.02 per cent higher at 46,263.17, while the broader NSE Nifty rose 9.70 points or 0.07 per cent to 13,567.85.
Foreign institutional investors were net buyers in the capital market as they purchased shares worth Rs 2,484.09 crore on a net basis on Tuesday, according to exchange data. Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.12 per cent to USD 50.35 per barrel.
