Indian rupee drops against UAE dirham on geopolitical tension, high oil price

The Indian rupee declined 14 paise to 75.18 against the US dollar (20.48 versus the UAE dirham) in opening trade on Thursday, as geopolitical tensions and muted Indian equities weighed on investor sentiment.

Forex traders in India said sustained foreign fund outflows and high crude prices too weakened the rupee.

At the Indian interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 74.94 against the dollar, then slipped further to 75.18, registering a decline of 14 paise from the last close. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, rose 0.30 per cent to 95.98.

The White House on Wednesday said that a Russian invasion of Ukraine can happen anytime now, as President Joe Biden announced plans to dispatch Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Tony Blinken to attend the Munich conference to meet world leaders and unite them against Moscow. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki anticipated that an attack could take place at any time.

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Meanwhile, global oil benchmark Brent crude futures fell 0.80 per cent to $94.05 per barrel.

The 30-share Sensex was trading 67.95 points or 0.12 per cent lower at 57,928.73, while the broader NSE Nifty slipped 1.45 points, or 0.01 per cent, to 17,320.75.

(With inputs from PTI)

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