The rupee strengthened by 25 paise to 46.39 against the US dollar in early trade on hopes of fresh capital inflows into equity in line with firming trends on other Asian markets.Dollar's losses against other currencies too supported the Indian rupee.At the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market, the local unit appreciated by 25 paise to 46.39 a dollar. The rupee ended 20 paise lower at 46.64 in the previous session on Friday.