Rupee falls 4 paise to close at 79.66 against US dollar

MUMBAI, Aug 12: The rupee depreciated 4 paise to close at 79.66 (provisional) against the US dollar on Friday, tracking a strong American currency in the overseas market and rising crude oil prices.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local currency opened at 79.67 and saw an intra-day high of 79.63 and a low of 79.72 against the American currency.
It finally ended at 79.66, down 4 paise over its previous close.
On Thursday, the rupee depreciated by 37 paise to close at 79.62 against the US dollar.
Traders said the rupee traded in a narrow range as investors awaited key domestic macroeconomic data points like index of industrial production (IIP) and consumer price index (CPI) for further cues.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, rose 0.26 per cent to 105.36.
Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, advanced 0.55 per cent to USD 100.15 per barrel.
On the domestic equity market front, the BSE Sensex ended 130.18 points or 0.22 per cent higher at 59,462.78 points, while the broader NSE Nifty advanced 39.15 points or 0.22 per cent to 17,698.15 points.
Foreign institutional investors remained net buyers in the capital market on Thursday as they purchased shares worth Rs 2,298.08 crore, as per exchange data. (PTI)