The rupee started 2017 on a weaker note and plummeted by a whopping 30 paise to 68.22 against the US dollar due to huge demand for the American currency.
The domestic currency resumed on a weak note at 67.95 from last Friday’s closing level of 67.92 in an extremely quiet trade at the Interbank Foreign Exchange Market.
But it witnessed a sudden bout of volatility in mid- afternoon deals and drifted down to hit an intra-day low of 68.25 before ending at 68.22, revealing a steep loss of 30 paise, or 0.44 per cent.
Meanwhile, the rupee finished the year-2016 with a 2.68 per cent annual fall, scripting its sixth consecutive years of decline against the green back.
A large part of the out performance was attributed to heavy capital outflows during the fag-end of the year, although it rebounded after plunging to historic lows.