Rupee ends substantially weaker on Wednesday

Indian rupee ended weaker against dollar on Wednesday, due to demand for the greenback from banks and importers. Weakness in the rupee is being attributed to the relentless selling in stock market. Moreover, sustained capital outflows weighed on the domestic unit. After getting a weak opening, rupee breached 68-mark for the first time since September 4, 2013, but pulled back as state-owned banks were spotted selling dollars likely on behalf of the Reserve Bank of India. On the global front, the safe-haven yen soared on Wednesday, as risk appetite soured after crude oil prices fell to near 13-year lows, dragging the dollar to a one-year low with investors trimming the chances of more tightening by the Federal Reserve.

Finally, the rupee ended at 67.96, 31 paise weaker from its previous close of 67.65 on Tuesday. The currency touched a high and low of 68.16 and 67.84 respectively. The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) reference rate for the dollar stood at 67.97 and for Euro stood at 74.48 on January 20, 2016. While the RBI’s reference rate for the Yen stood at 58.24, the reference rate for the Great Britain Pound (GBP) stood at 96.2016. The reference rates are based on 12 noon rates of a few select banks in Mumbai.