The rupee fell 28 paise to close at 56.72 against the dollar on the back of weak global cues and heavy demand for the American currency from banks and oil importers.
The Indian unit opened at 56.43 against the dollar from the previous close of 56.44 at the Interbank Foreign Exchange market. Intraday, the rupee touched a low of 56.78 and a high of 56.30 to the dollar.
“The rupee was seen trading in the 48 paise range. It could not sustain yesterday’s gains and lost momentum against the US dollar.
“The rupee was seen weakening despite the flat dollar index and positive closing in the domestic stock markets. Technically, the USD/INR pair is consistently moving upwards and signalling a strong positive momentum ahead,” said Abhishek Goenka, Founder and CEO, India Forex Advisors.
Call rises, bonds dip
The inter-bank call money rates closed higher at 7.30 from the previous close of 7.25 per cent.
The 8.15 per cent government security, which matures in 2022, closed lower at 104.83 from the previous close of Rs 104.95. Yields increased to 7.40 per cent from the previous close of 7.39 per cent.