The rupee depreciated by 24 paise to 69.46 against the US dollar in early trade Monday on increased demand for the US currency from importers and weak opening in domestic equities. Forex traders said, the US President Donald Trump on Sunday threatened to raise tariffs on USD 200 billion worth of Chinese goods and this in turn impacted investor sentiment in the currency market. The rupee opened weak at 69.38 at the interbank forex market and then fell further to 69.46, down 24 paise over its last close. The local currency however pared the initial loss and was trading at 69.41 at 0926 hrs.

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The rupee had strengthened by 15 paise to close at 69.22 against the US dollar Friday. Besides, strength in dollar against major rival currencies, foreign fund outflows and heavy selling in domestic equities also kept pressure on the Indian rupee, dealers said.

Meanwhile, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) pulled out Rs 400.68 crore on a net basis Friday, provisional data showed. Domestic bourses opened on a negative note Monday with benchmark indices Sensex trading 362.11 points down at 38,601.15 and Nifty down 112.75 points at 11,599.50. However, easing crude prices helped in restricting the slide in the Indian unit to some extent, they added.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, fell 2.22 per cent to USD 69.28 per barrel.