The rupee declined by 29 paise to 70.32 against the US dollar in opening trade Friday as crude oil prices firmed up and US-China trade

Mumbai, May 17: The rupee declined by 29 paise to 70.32 against the US dollar in opening trade Friday as crude oil prices firmed up and US-China trade related concerns weighed on investor community. Forex traders said, besides the US-China trade concerns, foreign fund outflows also kept pressure on the Indian rupee. The rupee opened weak at 70.22 at the interbank forex market and then fell further to 70.32, down 29 paise over its last close.

The rupee had settled at 70.03 against the US dollar on Thursday. However, a positive opening in domestic equities supported the local unit and restricted the fall. Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.30 per cent to USD 72.84 per barrel. Foreign institutional investors remained net sellers in the capital markets, pulling out Rs 953.23 crore Thursday, as per provisional data. Domestic bourses opened on a positive note Friday with benchmark indices Sensex trading 192.61 points up at 37,586.09 and Nifty rising 51.25 points to 11,308.35.

Forex

Meanwhile, on the global front, China on Thursday warned of retaliation against US President Donald Trump's order that effectively barred Chinese telecom giant Huawei from the US market, saying Beijing will take "necessary measures" to safeguard rights and interest of its business firms. The US and China are already locked in a trade battle that has seen mounting tariffs, sparking fears the conflict will damage the global economy.