Closing

Mumbai: The dollar ended sharply dearer against the rupee at Rs39.5550/5650 per dollar and the pound sterling also finished higher at Rs77.08/10 per pound at the close of the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market on 21 January. PTI

Afternoon

Mumbai: The rupee extended losses in tandem with a sharp decline in local shares on Monday, though suspected central bank intervention and exporter dollar sales limited losses, dealers say.

At 3 pm, the partially convertible rupee was at 39.480/490 per dollar, weaker than the previous close of 39.29/31. It reached an intraday low of 39.53.

Indian shares fell for a sixth successive day on Monday, with the benchmark share index declining by nearly 11% in late afternoon trade. It fell 8.7% last week, its biggest weekly slide since May 2006.

In 2007, foreign fund buying of a record $17.4 billion of stocks was a key driver for the rupee’s rise of more than 12%. Foreigners sold about $1.1 billion worth of shares on Wednesday and Thursday, weighing on the local unit. Reuters

Morning

Mumbai: The rupee came under pressure on Monday weighed by concerns about outflows from the stock market amid declines in Asian equities and heightened fears of a recession in the United States, dealers said.

At 9:45 am, the partially convertible rupee was at 39.345/355 per dollar, losing ground from the previous close of 39.29/31. It struck a decade-high of 39.16 in November.

“Falling stocks are on everyone’s mind at the moment, and with the central bank buying dollar inflows, there’s really only one way for the rupee to go at the moment,” said a dealer with a foreign bank.

Indian shares fell for a sixth successive day on Monday, with the benchmark share index declining by over 2% in early deals, on top of a 8.7% fall last week, its biggest weekly slide since May 2006.

In 2007, foreign fund buying of a record $17.4 billion of stocks was a key driver for the rupee’s rise of more than 12%. Foreigners sold about $1.1 billion worth of shares on Wednesday and Thursday, weighing on the local unit.

Asian currencies and equity markets fell on Monday as investors shunned riskier assets as US President’s George W. Bush’s plan to stimulate the economy failed to assuage investors over a possible US recession.

Dealers watched for signals that the US central bank would slash rates by a half-point after a meeting on 29-30 January.

Local dealers were mixed about the impact on the rupee of a possible Fed rate cut, with a section of the market anticipating it would boost capital flows into high-yielding Indian assets. Reuters