Rupee edges 4 paise lower to 74.98 against US dollar in early deals

Mumbai, Aug 7 (PTI): The rupee traded marginally lower at 74.98 against the US dollar, down 4 paise, in early deals on Friday due to emergence of demand for the American currency from banks and importers.

At the foreign bank exchange, the domestic unit opened on a weak note and went on to touch a low of 75.04 before staging a quick mild recovery, though still trading in the red.

The Indian currency had ended steady on Thursday after the RBI decided to maintain a status quo in its policy rates.

Keeping interest rates unchanged to help tame inflation, the central bank decided to continue with the accommodative stance of monetary policy as long as necessary to revive growth.

Analysts, however, are of the view that the Reserve Bank expecting the inflation at elevated levels until September before easing and economic growth to shrink would exert pressure on the forex market in the near term.

Meanwhile, the US dollar index, which gauges the value of the greenback against a basket of key global currencies, rose 0.32 per cent to 93.08.

Foreign investors infused INR 637.43 crore on a net basis into Indian equities on Thursday, exchange data showed.

Global crude oil benchmark Brent was trading marginally lower at USD 45.08 a barrel.

On the domestic equities front, the BSE Sensex was down 75.60 points or 0.20 per cent at 37,949.85; while the NSE Nifty traded 11.70 points or 0.10 per cent lower at 11,188.45.