The Indian rupee on Friday appreciated by 11 paise against the US currency in early trade on capital inflows by foreign funds on expectation that the domestic markets may open strong, in tandem with other global bourses.

At the Interbank Foreign Exchange (forex) market, the domestic currency gained 11 paise to quote at 48.49 a dollar over Sunday's close of 48.60.

In the overseas market, the dollar weakened against major Asian currencies, influencing the rupee sentiment, forex dealers said.

They also said anticipation that the markets would open strong also led to the rise in the rupee.

The Indian benchmark Sensex on Sunday ended lower by 77.11 points or 0.53 per cent while Asian indices gained about 1.0 per cent to 2.15 per cent after the Federal Reserve kept its fund rate steady.