Rupee rises 9 paise to 88.51 against US dollar in early trade
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Mumbai (PTI): The rupee gained 9 paise to 88.51 against the US dollar in early trade on Wednesday, supported by lower crude oil prices even as volatile equity markets across the globe weighed on investor sentiment.
The rupee also faced pressure due to a strong American currency as well as withdrawal of foreign capital from domestic stock markets, forex traders said.
At the same time, investors were concerned about the progress on the proposed India-US trade deal and the domestic PMI data to be released later this week.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 88.57 and gained further to trade at 88.51 against the greenback in initial deals, up 9 paise from its previous closing level.
On Tuesday, the rupee settled 1 paisa lower at 88.60 against the US dollar.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.04 per cent higher at 99.49.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, declined 0.34 per cent to USD 64.67 per barrel in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, Sensex declined 46.27 points, or 0.05 per cent, to 84,626.75 in early trade, while the Nifty slipped 8.35 points, or 0.03 per cent, to 25,901.70.
Foreign institutional investors sold equities worth Rs 728.82 crore on Tuesday, according to exchange data.
Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday said "you will hear a good news" on the proposed trade pact between India and the US once the deal is fair, equitable and balanced.
The remarks came days after US President Donald Trump stated that the US is "pretty close" to reaching a "fair trade deal" with India, and added that he will lower tariffs imposed on Indian goods at "some point".
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SIT formed to probe second sexual assault case against expelled Cong MLA Mamkootathil
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): A Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been constituted to probe a second case of sexual assault against expelled Congress MLA Rahul Mamkootathil, police officials said on Friday.
The SIT will be led by G Poonguzhali, Assistant Inspector General at the Police Headquarters.
The team also includes a DSP rank officer and sub-inspectors, officials added.
The second sexual assault complaint was received by the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee, which it forwarded to the state police chief.
ALSO READ: Cong expels rape-accused MLA Mamkootathil from party's primary membership
Following this, the Crime Branch registered a case and launched an investigation.
Crime Branch officials said the email complaint contained only the sender's email ID and no other contact details.
As part of the probe, they have sent a reply email requesting that the complainant contact them and provide her statement.
The complainant has alleged that she was sexually assaulted under the false promise of marriage, a Crime Branch official said.
However, details such as the location and date of the alleged incident are not currently available to the police.
The SIT will attempt to trace the sender of the email and record her statement, which is crucial for further investigation, the officer said.
Mamkootathil was expelled from the Congress party on Thursday after a court here rejected his anticipatory bail petition in another rape case.
Police said he is currently absconding, and a manhunt is underway in Kerala and neighbouring states.
