Rupee slips 7 paise to close at 74.51 against US dollar

The rupee on Thursday slipped 7 paise to close at 74.51 (provisional) against the US dollar, tracking a lacklustre trend in the domestic equity market.

Forex traders said sustained foreign fund outflows and firm crude oil prices weighed on the local unit. Moreover, investors remained cautious ahead of the US Federal Reserve's meeting due next week.

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At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local currency opened at 74.43 against the greenback and witnessed an intra-day high of 74.29 and a low of 74.53 during the session.

The rupee finally settled at 74.51, down 7 paise over its previous close of 74.44.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.02 per cent up at 95.53.

Meanwhile, Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, fell 0.63 per cent to USD 87.88 per barrel.

On the domestic equity market front, the BSE Sensex ended 634.20 points or 1.06 per cent lower at 59,464.62, while the broader NSE Nifty declined 181.40 points or 1.01 per cent to 17,757.00.

Foreign institutional investors were net sellers in the capital market on Wednesday, as they offloaded shares worth Rs 2,704.77 crore, as per stock exchange data.