The rupee continued on its downward spiral in early trade today, shedding 20 paise to a low of Rs 51.91 per dollar on persistent demand for the American currency from banks and importers on the back of a higher dollar overseas, before making a marginal recovery.

The rupee resumed lower at Rs 51.75/76 per dollar at the Interbank Foreign Exchange against its previous close of Rs 51.71/72 per dollar. It dropped further to Rs 51.91 per dollar before quoting at Rs 51.85/86 per dollar at 10.30 am.

The domestic currency hovered in a range between Rs 51.70 and Rs 51.91 per dollar in the morning deals.

Sustained dollar demand from banks and importers in view of a higher dollar in the overseas markets mainly affected the rupee value against the dollar, a forex dealer said.

In Sydney, the dollar inched up against the euro in early trade as investors eyed a rate decision by the European Central Bank later in the day, as well as the outcome of a summit of European leaders on the euro zone sovereign debt crisis.

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