Mumbai, Nov 10 (PTI) The rupee depreciated 8 paise to settle at 88.73 against the US dollar in a muted session on Monday, weighed down by elevated crude oil prices.

However, positive domestic equity markets and a soft US dollar cushioned the rupee's downside, forex traders said.

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 88.64 against the American currency, and touched an intraday high of 88.64 and a low of 88.73 against the greenback during the day.

The domestic unit finally settled for the day at 88.73, lower by 8 paise from its previous close.

On Friday, the rupee slipped 2 paise to 88.65 against the US dollar.

"We expect the rupee to trade with a slight negative bias on rising global markets and a surge in crude oil prices. Importers' demand for the US dollar may also put pressure on the rupee.

"However, any weakening of the US dollar amid concerns over the long-term health of the US economy may support the rupee at lower levels. Markets may remain volatile as the US Government shutdown nears an end. USD/INR spot price is expected to trade in a range of 88.50 to 89," said Anuj Choudhary, Research Analyst, Mirae Asset ShareKhan.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, fell 0.04 per cent to 99.55.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 1.01 per cent to USD 64.27 per barrel in futures trading.

On the domestic equity markets front, the Sensex climbed 319.07 points to settle at 83,535.35, while the Nifty gained 82.05 points to 25,574.35.

Foreign institutional investors sold equities worth Rs 4,114.85 crore on Monday, according to exchange data.

Meanwhile, India's forex reserves dropped USD 5.623 billion to USD 689.733 billion for the week ended October 31, the Reserve Bank of India said on Friday.

The overall reserves had declined by USD 6.925 billion to USD 695.355 billion. PTI DRR BAL BAL

Foreign exchange reserves show pressure on the currency; regulatory monitoring urged as importers' dollar demand raises volatility. Foreign exchange and currency stability: the domestic currency depreciated modestly against the US dollar driven by rising crude prices, importers' dollar demand, and US dollar index movements. The Reserve Bank's decline in foreign exchange reserves is highlighted as a regulatory indicator relevant to external buffers. Market volatility linked to international fiscal uncertainty and equity flows underscores the need for supervisory monitoring of FX market functioning, capital flows, and reserve adequacy to support orderly conditions.