MUMBAI: The rupee declined 14 paise to 75.18 against the US dollar in opening trade on Thursday, as geopolitical tensions and muted domestic equities weighed on investor sentiment.
Forex traders said sustained foreign fund outflows and elevated crude oil prices too weakened the rupee.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 74.94 against the US dollar, then slipped further to 75.18, registering a decline of 14 paise from the last close.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, rose 0.30 per cent to 95.98.
The White House on Wednesday said that a Russian invasion of Ukraine can happen anytime now, as President Joe Biden announced plans to dispatch Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Blinken to attend the Munich conference to meet world leaders and unite them against Moscow.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki anticipated that an attack could take place at any time.
Meanwhile, global oil benchmark Brent crude futures fell 0.80 per cent to USD 94.05 per barrel. On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share Sensex was trading 67.95 points or 0.12 per cent lower at 57,928.73, while the broader NSE Nifty slipped 1.45 points, or 0.01 per cent, to 17,320.75.
Foreign institutional investors remained net sellers in the capital market on Wednesday as they offloaded shares worth Rs 1,890.96 crore, as per stock exchange data.