Rupee rises 16 paise to 73.73 against US dollar in early trade

MUMBAI: The rupee strengthened by 16 paise to 73.73 against the US dollar in opening trade on Friday, tracking gains in Asian peers and positive domestic equities.

At the interbank forex market, the domestic unit opened at 73.76 against the US dollar, then gained further ground and touched 73.73, registering a rise of 16 paise over its previous close.

On Thursday, the rupee dived 32 paise to touch a near one-month low of 73.89 against the US dollar. "Asian currencies have started mixed, however, Chinese yuan has started with gains and could lend support. Markets will look to global cues and could await forex reserves data," Reliance Securities said in a research note.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.01 per cent down at 93.34. On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share BSE benchmark Sensex was trading 255.51 points higher at 36,809.11 and broader NSE Nifty surged 73.70 points to 10,879.25.

Foreign institutional investors were net sellers in the capital market as they offloaded shares worth Rs 1,885.69 crore on Thursday, according to provisional exchange data. Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.60 per cent to USD 42.19 per barrel.