The rupee continued to decline against the US currency in the morning trade losing another 14 paise to trade at 44.45 per dollar on persistent dollar demand from banks and importers.
The domestic unit resumed steady at 44.30/31 per dollar at the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market against the last closing level of 44.31/32 per dollar but dropped immediately to 44.45 per dollar before quoting at 44.38/39 per dollar at 10.30 a.m.
It hovered in a range of 44.30 per dollar and 44.45 per dollar during the early trade.
Sustained dollar demand from banks and importers in view of uncertainty in the currency market mainly affected the rupee value against the dollar, a dealer said.
However, the dollar fell in New York market yesterday, extending losses against traditional safe-haven currencies even after Switzerland tried to curtail the Swiss franc’s gains, after a weak report on the US services sector added to worries about economic growth.
Meanwhile, Japan intervened in the foreign exchange markets in the early trade to curb the yen’s strength, prompting a sharp pullback in the local unit a day after Switzerland acted to push down its own currency.