The rupee depreciated 9 paise to 83.43 against the US dollar in early trade on Monday amid rising crude oil prices and outflow of foreign capital. The domestic unit, however, found support due to a softening American currency and positive equity market sentiment, forex traders said. At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 83.39 and lost further ground to trade at 83.43 against the greenback in initial deals, registering a fall of 9 paise from its previous closing level. On Friday, the rupee settled 11 paise higher at 83.34 against the US dollar. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading at 105.30, lower by 0.23 per cent. "The US dollar eased slightly on Friday after data showed inflation subsided, reinforcing expectations of Federal Reserve rate cuts this year," said Anand James, Chief Market Strategist, Geojit Financial Services. Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, adva