Indian rupee drops to 20.20 versus UAE dirham

Dubai - The US dollar index was trading up 0.02 per cent at 94.05.

The Indian rupee declined five paise to 74.17 against the US dollar (20.20 versus the UAE dirham) in opening trade on Monday, in line with its Asian peers amid the strengthening of the American currency in the overseas market.

At the Indian interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 74.16 against the dollar, then fell further to 74.17, registering a fall of five paise over its previous close.

The US dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading up 0.02 per cent at 94.05.

On the Indian equity market front, the BSE Sensex was trading 621.28 points or 1.06 per cent higher at 59,386.86, while the broader NSE Nifty advanced 185.80 points or 1.06 per cent to 17,717.85.

The Indian rupee opened weaker this Monday morning against the dollar, tracking losses in Asian and emerging market currencies on renewed worries over the China Evergrande Group’s debt troubles, said Sriram Iyer, Senior Research Analyst at Reliance Securities.

The focus this week will be on developments at Evergrande and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) monetary policy meeting and the US monthly jobs report, he said.

The Reserve Bank of India’s Monetary Policy Committee is expected to keep the key rate unchanged but could signal the beginning of the unwinding of its accommodative monetary policies, Iyer added.

(with inputs from PTI)

• Dubai