The rupee weakened by 12 paise to 68.74 against the US dollar due to fresh demand for the American currency from importers.

Traders said besides fresh demand for the US currency from importers, dollar’s firmness against some currencies overseas weighed on the domestic unit.

The local currency had ended weak by 17 paise at 68.62 yesterday. The benchmark Sensex rose 142.14 points, or 0.39 per cent, to an intraday high of 36,515.58 in early trade.