The rupee rose in early trade on Thursday, helped by dollar flows into local

RELATED ARTICLES Rupee slide: RBI Governor meets Manmohan Singh Rupee up 26 paise against dollar after initial fall Rupee up 26 paise against dollar after initial fall Petrol price hike fails to lift rupee; diesel eyed Rupee hits record low; govt may lift diesel price

debt, with the November industrial output data watched for cues on economic growth and possible RBI action.

At 9:03 a.m. (0333 GMT), the rupee was at 51.85/86 to the dollar, higher than Wednesday's close of 51.90/91.

Industrial output likely rose at an annual rate of 2.2 percent in November, a Reuters poll showed. The data is due at 11 a.m. (0530 GMT).