Rupee declines 20 paise to 82.71 against U.S. dollar in early trade

Retail inflation dipped below the RBI's upper tolerance level of 6% for the first time in 11 months in November

The rupee depreciated 20 paise to 82.71 against the U.S. dollar in early trade on Tuesday due to unabated foreign fund outflows from domestic capital markets.

However, a positive trend in equity markets and a weak dollar overseas capped the rupee's fall, forex traders said.

Investors remained in risk-off mode ahead of the U.S. inflation data release and Federal Reserve decision on interest rates slated to be announced later this week, they added.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the domestic unit opened weak at 82.63 against the dollar, then lost further ground to 82.71, registering a decline of 20 paise over its previous close.

In the previous session, the rupee fell 23 paise to end at 82.51 against the U.S. dollar.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.16% to 104.96.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, advanced 1.23% to $78.95 per barrel.