The Indian rupee appreciated by 23 paise to 76.11 against the US dollar in early trade on Thursday tracking positive opening in domestic equities. Forex traders said higher opening in domestic equities supported the local unit, while concerns over coronavirus outbreak weighed on the local unit. At the interbank foreign exchange the rupee opened at 76.11, registering a rise of 23 paise over its previous close. On Wednesday, rupee had settled at 76.34 against the US dollar. Traders said investor sentiments remain fragile amid concerns over the impact of coronavirus outbreak on the domestic as well as global economy. The number of deaths around the world linked to the new coronavirus has touched 82,000. In India, over 5,200 coronavirus cases have been reported so far. Meanwhile, domestic bourses opened on a positive note on Thursday with benchmark indices Sensex trading 836.63 points higher at 30,730.59 and Nifty up by 249.15 points at 8,997.90. Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) remained net buyers in the capital market, as they bought equity shares worth Rs 1,943.41 crore on Wednesday, according to provisional exchange data. Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.27 per cent to USD 32.93 per barrel. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback”s strength against the basket of six currencies was trading 0.04 per cent down at 100.07.
