Rupee falls 21 paise to close at 82.80 against US dollar

Mumbai: The rupee depreciated 21 paise to close at 82.80 against the US dollar on Wednesday, tracking a muted trend in domestic equities ahead of the release of the US Fed's policy statement.

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 82.64 and witnessed a high of 82.62 and a low of 82.81.

It finally settled at 82.80 against the American currency, registering a fall of 21 paise over its last close of 82.59.

"Rupee consolidated in a narrow range ahead of the important events that are lined up today and tomorrow," said Gaurang Somaiya, Forex & Bullion Analyst, Motilal Oswal Financial Services.

The focus will be on the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) policy statement on Wednesday, which is likely to trigger volatility for the greenback.

The Pound and Euro too are consolidating in a range ahead of the Bank of England (BoE) policy statement. The BoE is also expected to raise rates and maintain a hawkish stance.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, rose 0.28 per cent to 111.17.

On equity matket front, benchmarks surrendered early gains to close with losses on Wednesday, snapping their four-day winning streak as investors pared exposure to telecom, realty and tech stocks amid a mixed trend in global markets.

Investors were also cautious ahead of the US Federal Reserve's meeting on interest rates, while a depreciating rupee further weighed on sentiment, traders said.

After a positive beginning, the 30-share BSE Sensex failed to hold on to the gains and ended 215.26 points or 0.35 per cent lower at 60,906.09. During the day, it slipped 326.96 points or 0.53 per cent to 60,794.39.

Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty fell 62.55 points or 0.34 per cent to settle at 18,082.85.

Bharti Airtel was the top gainer among the Sensex constituents, spurting 3.05 per cent, followed by Maruti, Hindustan Unilever, Infosys, HCL Technologies, IndusInd Bank and Titan.

On the other hand, Sun Pharma, ITC, Tech Mahindra, Dr Reddy's and Reliance Industries were among the gainers.

In the broader market, the BSE midcap gauge dipped 0.12 per cent, while the smallcap index climbed 0.23 per cent.

Among BSE sectoral indices, telecommunication declined 1.31 per cent, realty fell 1.01 per cent, teck dipped 1 per cent, auto (0.75 per cent), utilities (0.63 per cent) and IT (0.55 per cent).

Metal, healthcare, energy and commodities ended in the green.

International oil benchmark Brent crude was trading 0.17 per cent higher at $94.81 per barrel.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net buyers on Tuesday as they bought shares worth Rs 2,609.94 crore, as per exchange data.