Mumbai: The rupee pared all its gains and settled 14 paise lower at 85.44 against the US dollar amid incessant foreign fun outflows triggered by worldwide sell-offs due to concerns over escalating tariff war.
Forex traders said the domestic unit gained initially on weak US dollar index and a sharp decline in crude oil prices, but reversed the trend later due to weak equity market sentiment and foreign investors’ rush for withdrawal amid uncertain global macroeconomic situation.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 85.07, touched an intra-day high of 84.96 and a low of 85.44 against the greenback. The unit ended the session at 85.44 against the dollar, registering a loss of 14 paise from its previous closing level.
On Thursday, the rupee settled at 85.30, higher by 22 paise against the US dollar as the greenback weakened against its major peers after President Donald Trump unleashed reciprocal tariffs on about 60 countries.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.42 per cent lower at 101.64, on disappointing services PMI data and concerns over trade
tariffs.