Rupee tumbles 67 paise against dollar in early trade; currency under pressure after tit-for-tat US-China tariff attacks

Mumbai: The rupee tumbled by 67 paise to 72.09 against the US currency in early trade on Tuesday, tracking weak opening in domestic equities amid strong dollar demand from banks and importers. Forex traders said the US tariffs on imports from China took effect on Sunday and were followed later by Beijing’s retaliation. Following this, the domestic currency was under pressure. The rupee had appreciated by 38 paise to close at a two-week high of 71.42 against the US dollar on Friday led by a rally in domestic equities and renewed hopes of the US-China trade talks. The forex market was closed on Monday on account of Ganesh Chaturthi. [caption id=“attachment_5131081” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  FP photo.[/caption] At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 72.00 then fell to 72.09 against the US dollar, showing a decline of 67 paise over its previous closing. The Indian rupee on Friday had closed at 71.42 against the US dollar. Traders said strengthening of the greenback vis-a-vis other currencies overseas and weak opening in domestic equities weighed on the local unit. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) remained net buyers in the capital market, putting in Rs 1,162.95 crore on Friday, provisional data with the exchanges showed. The 30-share index was trading 371.23 points or 0.99 percent lower at 36,961.56 and the broader Nifty fell 136.90 points or 1.24 percent to 10,886.35. The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, inched up 0.37 percent to 99.28. Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, eased marginally by 0.02 percent to $58.65 per barrel. The 10-year government bond yield was at 6.52 percent in morning trade.