The rupee extended Wednesday's gains and opened 8 paise higher at 67.83 against the dollar on Thursday after the American currency lost some of the steam against a basket of top global currencies as investors booked some profit before the release of US economic data due later in the day. Meanwhile, selling of dollars by banks and exporters further strengthened the local currency in opening trade. As per Angel Broking, the rupee is expected to trade sideways to positive as investors book profit prior to the forthcoming Christmas which will keep the dollar index weak.