The rupee depreciated 12 paise to 82.66 against the US dollar in early trade on Thursday, weighed down by sustained foreign fund outflows and a muted trend in domestic equities.
According to forex dealers, investor mood was further harmed by high crude oil prices and a strong American dollar.
The local unit at the interbank foreign exchange opened weakly against the dollar at 82.59, then dropped to 82.66, losing 12 paise from its previous close.
In the previous session on Wednesday, the rupee appreciated 16 paise to close at 82.54 against the US dollar after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) hiked the repo rate by 25 basis points.
The dollar index, which measures the strength of the dollar against a basket of six different currencies, decreased 0.05 percent to 103.36.
The benchmark for world oil, Brent crude futures, fell 0.01 percent to USD 85.08 a barrel.
The 30-share BSE Sensex was down 177.7 points, or 0.29 percent, to 60,486.09 on the domestic equity market. The NSE Nifty, which is more inclusive, dropped 81.65 points or 0.46 percent to 17,790.05.
According to exchange data, Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) sold shares worth Rs 736.82 crore on Wednesday, making them net sellers in the capital markets.
