Rupee traded in a narrow range against the US dollar in early trade on Monday and is hovering around the crucial 96 mark, amid persistent pressure ​from elevated crude oil prices and sustained foreign fund outflows.

Forex traders said periodic dollar interventions by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) helped smooth excessive intraday volatility and capped sharper losses for the rupee, the overall macro environment of elevated import bills and persistent greenback strength weighed on investor sentiment.