The rupee fell 1 paisa to 84.92 against the US dollar in early trade on Tuesday due to foreign fund outflows and a weak domestic equity market. Forex traders expect dollar demand from importers and foreign banks to keep the rupee under pressure.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 84.89 against the dollar and fell 1 paisa to 84.92. The rupee fell 11 paise to 84.91 per dollar on Monday, a record low.
The Indian rupee is expected to open at its lowest after a record import number and trade deficit for November 24, mainly due to gold buying, lowered it in NDF markets," said Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP.
Where RBI supports rupee will determine opening, but trend is weak. Bhansali said the daily range is 84.75/00 with RBI closely monitored.
In November, India's exports fell 4.85% to USD 32.11 billion, while the trade deficit rose to an all-time high of USD 37.84 billion due to a record gold import surge.
According to commerce ministry data, gold imports in November reached a record high of USD 14.86 billion, four-folds higher due to festival and wedding demand.
Gold imports totaled $3.44 billion in November 2023. The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.02 percent to 106.83.
Global oil benchmark Brent fell 0.12% to USD 73.82 per barrel in futures trade.
In morning trade, the 30-share BSE Sensex was down 326.76 points or 0.40 percent at 81,421.81 points and the Nifty was down 107.50 points or 0.44 percent to 24,560.75.
FIIs sold Rs 278.70 crore in capital markets on Monday, according to exchange data.