Rupee surges 17 paise to 74.87 against US dollar in early trade

The rupee gained 17 paise to 74.87 against the US dollar in opening trade on Wednesday tracking positive domestic equities and weak American currency.

At the interbank forex market, the domestic unit opened at 74.93 against the US dollar, gained further ground and touched 74.87 against the US dollar, registering a gain of 17 paise over its previous close.

It had settled at 75.04 against the US dollar on Tuesday.

Forex traders said positive trend in the equity markets, weak American currency and sustained foreign fund inflows supported the rupee.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.28 per cent to 93.12.

On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share BSE benchmark Sensex was trading 391.87 points higher at 38,079.78 and broader NSE Nifty advanced 121.20 points to 11,216.45.

Foreign institutional investors were net buyers in the capital market as they purchased shares worth Rs 703.74 crore on Tuesday, according to provisional exchange data.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, slipped 0.09 per cent to USD 44.39 per barrel.