Mumbai, Dec 21 (PTI) The Indian rupee rose by 22 paise at Rs 52.65 per US dollar in early trade on Wednesday on fresh selling of dollars by banks and exporters due to weakness of the American currency overseas amid a firming trend in the domestic equity market. The rupee resumed higher at Rs 52.70/71 per dollar on the Interbank Foreign Exchange, as against its previous close of Rs 52.87/88 per dollar, and moved up further to Rs 52.65 per dollar before quoting at Rs 52.77/78 per dollar at 1030 hours. The domestic currency moved in a range between Rs 52.65 and Rs 52.85 per dollar during morning deals. Fresh selling of dollars by banks and exporters in view of dollar weakness in overseas markets mainly weighed on the rupee value against the dollar, a forex dealer said. In Hong Kong, the dollar weakened further against the euro on Tuesday after the release of strong US and German economic data the previous day, with investors focused on the European Central Bank long-term refinancing operations (LTRO) later in the day. Meanwhile, oil rose in Asian trade on Wednesday as investors gained confidence from positive US data, analysts said. New York''s main contract, light sweet crude WTI crude for delivery in February, advanced by USD 1.04 to USD 98.28 a barrel. The Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) Sensex was up by 254.90 points, or 1.68 per cent, at 15,429.98 in early trade.

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