The rupee was trading weak at 62.03 at 3.32 p.m. local time on sustained dollar demand from importers amid strong greenback overseas.
After opening lower at 62.04 per dollar against yesterday’s closing level of 61.96 at the Interbank Foreign Exchange market, the rupee depreciated sharply to a nine-month low of 62.22 in the late morning trade.
The domestic unit hovered in the range of 61.98 and 62.25 per dollar in the afternoon trade.
According to forex dealers, strengthening of US dollar overseas and higher demand from importers weighed heavily on the rupee movement.
In the New York market, the US dollar was trading strong against its major rivals and the Japanese yen slid to a seven-year low as speculators poured into carry trades funded by a tide of super-cheap liquidity from Bank of Japan.
The dollar index was trading marginally higher against most major currencies today on the back of dovish Fed meeting minutes released on Wednesday, as markets bet that the interest rates are set to rise next year.
Meanwhile, the 30-share BSE index Sensex was trading up 15.88 points or 0.06 per cent at 28,048.73.