Rupee rises 13 paise to 73.15 against US dollar in early trade

The rupee appreciated 13 paise to 73.15 against the US dollar in opening trade on Tuesday as positive domestic equities and weakness in the American currency boosted investor sentiment.

At the interbank forex market, the domestic unit opened at 73.16 against the US dollar and inched higher to 73.15 against the greenback, registering a rise of 13 paise over its previous close.

On Monday, the rupee had settled at 73.28 against the American currency.

"The US dollar has weakened across the board overnight with the euro back up to 1.21 levels," Abhishek Goenka, Founder and CEO, IFA Global said adding that rupee is likely to trade in 73.05-73.30 range with sideways price action.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.10 per cent to 90.67.

"The US dollar index is trading flat this morning in Asian trade against major peers. Markets will look ahead to the testimony of US Treasury Secretary nominee Janet Yellen later in the day," Reliance Securities said in a research note.

The euro and the sterling were flat to marginally higher against the US dollar this morning in Asian trade.

On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share BSE benchmark Sensex was trading 349.30 points higher at 48,913.57, and the broader NSE Nifty was up 106.90 points at 14,388.20.

Foreign institutional investors were net buyers in the capital market as they purchased shares worth Rs 650.60 crore on a net basis on Monday, according to provisional exchange data.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.47 per cent to $55.01 per barrel.