Rupee slips 15 paise to 70.84 against USD in early trade

The Indian rupee opened on a cautious note and fell 15 paise to 70.84 against the US dollar in early trade on Wednesday tracking subdued opening in domestic equities.

However, weakening of the US dollar vis-a-vis other currencies overseas and easing crude oil prices supported the domestic unit and restricted the fall.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 70.80 then lost momentum and fell to 70.84 against the US dollar, showing a decline of 15 paise over its previous closing.

The Indian rupee on Tuesday had closed at 70.69 against the US dollar.

Domestic bourses opened on a cautious note on Wednesday with benchmark indices Sensex trading 143.72 points down at 40,104.51 and Nifty lower by 45.30 points at 11,871.90.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) purchased shares worth Rs 473.17 crore on Tuesday, according to provisional exchange data.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, fell by 0.07 per cent to 97.91.

Crude oil benchmark, Brent Futures, eased 0.62 per cent to USD 62.57 per barrel.

The 10-year government bond yield was at 6.50 per cent in morning trade.

On the global front, media reports suggested that China wants the US to drop tariffs on USD 360 billion of imports for trade deal.

Meanwhile, the United Nations on Tuesday said that the ongoing trade war between the United States and China is harming both economies, with a sharp drop in exports and higher prices for consumers.