Rupee falls 15 paise to 89.90 against U.S. dollar in early trade

The rupee fell 15 paise to 89.90 against the US dollar in early trade on Wednesday (December 31, 2025) due to foreign fund outflows and a slow start in domestic equity markets.

Forex traders said foreign portfolio investors continued to sell Indian equities, which weighed on the Indian rupee in the past few months.

At the Interbank Foreign Exchange, the local unit opened at 89.89 against the dollar, then fell to 89.90, down 15 paise from its previous close.

On Tuesday (December 30), the rupee increased by 23 paise to close at 89.75 against the dollar.

“US-India trade uncertainties persist and FPIs have pulled out $16.5 billion from equities this year, keeping importer demand and exporter cautious,” said Anil Kumar Bhansali, head of treasury and executive director, Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP.

“With inflation at low levels, there is no need to raise interest rates on the rupee, and only continued inflows from FPIs can bring it back into appreciable mode. For the day, importers can buy on dips while exporters can sell on tops, near 90.00,” Mr Bhansali said.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading marginally higher by 0.04% at 98.27.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude was trading 0.08 per cent lower at $61.30 a barrel in futures trade.

On the domestic equity market front, Sensex opened 188.31 points higher at 84,863.39, while Nifty rose 80.70 points to 26,009.55.

According to exchange data, foreign institutional investors sold equities worth Rs 3,844.02 crore on Tuesday.