Rupee falls 23 paise to 89.94 against U.S. dollar in early trade

The rupee depreciated 23 paise to 89.94 against the U.S. dollar in early trade on Friday (December 26, 2025), weighed down by foreign fund outflows and recovery in crude oil prices.

Forex traders said a negative trend in domestic equities, dollar demand from importers, and trade deal uncertainty further dented investor sentiment.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the local unit opened at 89.84 against the dollar but lost ground to trade at 89.94, down 23 paise from its previous close.

On Wednesday (December 24, 2025), the rupee pared initial gains and settled for the day lower by eight paise at 89.71 against the U.S. dollar.

Forex and equity markets were closed on Thursday (December 25, 2025) for Christmas.

After strengthening to the 89.00 level last week, the rupee has again started to weaken in holiday-thin trade, with FPIs continuing to sell equity and buy dollars after a brief pause, said Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director at Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.08% lower at 97.89.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading 0.16% higher at $62.34 per barrel in futures trade.

On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share benchmark index Sensex declined 183.42 points to 85,225.28 in early trade, while the Nifty dipped 46.45 points to 26,095.65.

Foreign institutional investors offloaded equities worth ₹1,721.26 crore on Wednesday (December 24, 2025), according to exchange data.