Rupee declines 10 paise to 90.44 against U.S. dollar in early trade

The rupee extended its weakening momentum for the third straight session, losing 10 paise to 90.44 against the U.S. dollar in early trade on Friday (January 16, 2026), weighed down by relentless outflow of foreign funds and a firm greenback. Lower crude oil prices and positive equity market sentiment prevented a steep fall in the domestic currency, forex traders said. At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 90.37 and slipped further to trade at 90.44 against the greenback, 10 paise lower than the closing level of the previous session. The rupee declined 11 paise to close at 90.34 against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday (January 14, 2026), a day after falling 6 paise. The foreign exchange markets were closed on Thursday due to a holiday for the Mumbai municipal corporation elections. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which measures the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.02% lower at 99.10. Analysts said the American currency was impacted by the December U.S. inflation numbers, which have reduced hopes for an immediate interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve. Also, they said that the rupee faced pressure after data released on Thursday (January 15) showed India's trade deficit widened slightly to $25.04 billion in December 2025, compared to $24.53 billion in November and $22 billion in December 2024. Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading 0.34% lower at $63.54 per barrel in futures trade. On the domestic equity market front, the Sensex climbed 210.04 points to 83,592.75, while the Nifty rose 34.65 points to 25,700.25. Foreign institutional investors offloaded equities worth ₹4,781.24 crore on Wednesday (January 14), according to exchange data.