Mumbai: The rupee fell by 38 paise, touching the 71 per US dollar mark in early trade on Tuesday due to weak opening in domestic equities and strengthening of the American currency.

Investors have been on edge due to the strength of the US dollar against other overseas currencies, according to forex traders, amid concerns about US-China trade negotiations.

At the Interbank Foreign Exchange, the rupee opened weak at Rs 71.15 then fell further to 71.16 against the American currency, down 38 paise over its previous closing price.

The Indian rupee on Friday had closed at 70.78 against the US dollar. Forex market were closed on Monday on account of Bakrid.

Meanwhile, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net buyers in the capital markets, putting in Rs 203.73 crore on Friday, according to provisional exchange data.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, rose 0.23% to 97.60. Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, fell 0.12% to trade at $58.50 per barrel.

Domestic bourses opened on a negative note on Tuesday with benchmark indices Sensex trading 152.26 points lower at 37,429.65 and NIFTY down 41.15 points at 11,068.50.

The 10-year government bond yield was at 6.54% in morning trade.