Rupee weak in early trade; slips 9 paise against dollar

The rupee got off to a bumpy start as it depreciated 9 paise to 66.80 against the US dollar after demand for the American currency from importers went up.

Forex dealers said fresh demand for the US unit and a weak opening of the domestic equity market weighed on the rupee.

However, dollar's weakness against other currencies overseas after a US presidential election poll showed Donald Trump ahead of market favourite Hillary Clinton minimised the loss, they said.

On Tuesday, the rupee had closed 8 paise higher at 66.71 against the US dollar on sustained dollar unwinding from exporters and banks at the Interbank Forex Exchange market.

Meanwhile, the benchmark BSE Sensex plunged by 288.06 points or 1.03% at 27,588.55 in early trade.