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In early trade, the rupee fell 14 paise to 74.51 against the US dollar.

MUMBAI: The Indian rupee fell 14 paise to 74.51 against the US dollar in early trade on Wednesday, as investor sentiment was weighed down by a sluggish trend in the domestic equity market and a firm US dollar.

The rupee began at 74.51 versus the US dollar on the interbank foreign exchange, down 14 paise from the previous close.

The rupee had closed at 74.37 versus the US dollar on Tuesday.

Reliance Securities said in a research note that the Indian rupee opened lower on Wednesday morning, reflecting the strength of the US dollar.

However, the note added that lower crude oil prices and stronger regional currencies could limit the depreciation bias.

The dollar index, which measures the value of the dollar against a basket of six currencies, increased 0.16 percent to 96.06.

Brent crude futures fell 0.84 percent to $81.74 a barrel, the global benchmark.

Foreign institutional investors were net sellers in the capital market on Tuesday, offloading shares worth Rs 560.67 crore, as per exchange data.

On the domestic front, the 30-share Sensex was down 47 points, or 0.08 percent, to 60,275.37, while the wider NSE Nifty was down 18.90 points, or 0.11 percent, to 17,980.30.