According to forex experts, the Indian currency was also weighed down by the withdrawal of foreign funds even as investors moved cautiously, awaiting the GDP growth numbers for the July-September period to be announced later in the day.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 89.41. It slipped further to trade at 89.43 against the greenback in initial deals, registering a loss of 7 paise from its previous closing level.
The rupee depreciated 14 paise to settle at 89.36 against the US dollar on Thursday.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was 0.04 per cent higher at 99.56.
Analysts attributed the strength in the greenback to its increased demand from importers as well as banks for month-end trade payment settlements. Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.41 per cent to USD 63.60 per barrel in futures trade. On the domestic equity market front, the Sensex rose 91.01 points to 85,811.39 in early trade, while Nifty went up 18.85 points to 26,234.55.
Foreign institutional investors sold equities worth Rs 1,255.20 crore on a net basis on Thursday, according to exchange data.
