Rupee rises 27 paise to 86.52 against U.S. dollar in early trade

Rupee strengthens against the dollar due to lower crude oil prices and RBI measures, despite market volatility and outflows.

The rupee sustained its recovery from lowest level for the second straight session and appreciated 27 paise to 86.52 against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday (February 12, 2025) supported by easing crude oil prices and measures by the Reserve Bank.

However, rupee’s gain was capped by the volatile domestic equity markets, outflow of foreign funds and strengthening American currency amid concerns over the worldwide tariff war, forex traders said.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 86.44, touched a high of 86.36 and then traded at 86.52 against the greenback during early deals, 27 paise higher from its previous close.

On Tuesday (February 11, 2025), the rupee appreciated 66 paise, logging the maximum single-day gain since March 3, 2023, to close at 86.79 against the U.S. dollar.

The steep surge came a day after the unit plunged to near 88 per U.S. dollar level during intraday on Monday (February 10, 2025), though the currency staged a dramatic rebound in the second half to end the session with gains at 87.45 against the greenback.

Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.07% higher at 107.91.

The elevated level of dollar index was attributed to escalating trade tensions after the U.S. imposed a 25% tariffs on aluminium and steel imports into the country.