Mumbai, February 26 The rupee slipped by 1 paisa to close at 90.92 (provisional) against the US dollar on Thursday, weighed down by rising global crude oil prices and a strong US dollar against major rivals.
However, foreign fund inflows supported the local currency and prevented a further decline, forex traders said.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 90.86 against the dollar and traded within a narrow range of 90.81-90.93 during the session. Eventually, it closed at 90.92 (provisional), down 1 paisa from its previous close.
The rupee remained range-bound and closed with a gain of 4 paise at 90.91 against the US dollar on Wednesday.
"We expect the rupee to trade with a negative bias amid geopolitical risks between the US and Iran and trade tariff uncertainty. Negotiations between the US and Iran are likely to take place in Geneva, and the market will closely watch the outcome of the meeting. Traders may also take cues from weekly unemployment claims data from the US," Anuj Choudhary, Research Analyst, Mirae Asset ShareKhan, said.
The USD-INR spot price is expected to trade in a range of Rs 90.60 to Rs 91.20, he added.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the strength of the US dollar against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.03 per cent lower at 97.73.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, rose by 0.21 per cent to USD 71.00 per barrel in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, the Sensex dipped by 27.46 points to close at 82,248.61, while the Nifty was up by 14.05 points at 25,496.55.
On Wednesday, foreign institutional investors purchased equities worth Rs 2,991.64 crore, according to exchange data.
