Rupee ends 9 paise lower at 64.13 against dollar

The rupee slipped further by 9 paise to end at 64.13 against the US dollar on sustained demand for the American currency from banks and importers despite weak overseas sentiment.

Notwithstanding strong rally in domestic equity markets, month-end demand for the dollar from importers predominantly weighed on the rupee, forex dealers said. Besides, sustained capital outflows pressurized the local currency.

The rupee resumed substantially lower at 64.10 against Thursday's closing level of 64.04 at the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) on increased dollar demand from importers.

However, it witnessed a sharp rebound to touch an intra-day high of 63.9850 before sliding back to hit a fresh low of 64.17 and closed at 64.13, revealing a loss of 9 paise, or 0.14 per cent.

On the other hand, the dollar eased against other major currencies ahead of key macro data, including upcoming US consumer sentiment.

The US dollar index, which measures the greenback's strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was down by 0.19 per cent at 97.42.

Meanwhile, foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) remained net sellers and sold shares worth a net Rs 170.68 crore yesterday, as per provisional data released by the stock exchanges.

The benchmark BSE Sensex also shot up by a massive 409.21 points to end at 28,114.56.In the forward market, the premium for dollar eased further on consistent receivings from exporters.

The benchmark six-month premium payable in December moved down further to 182-184 paise from 184-186 paise yesterday, while far-forward contracts maturing in June, 2016 also fell to 408-410 paise from 411-413 paise. The RBI fixed the reference rate for the dollar at 64.0054 and for the euro at 70.1627.

The rupee recovered against the pound sterling to close at 99.86 from 100.10 yesterday and fell against the euro to 70.33 from 70.18. It declined against the Japanese currency to 51.58 per 100 yen from 51.49 previously.