The rupee on Thursday fell 27 paise against the dollar to trade near 70.08 again amid strong demand for the U.S. currency after the U.S. Fed released minutes of its policy.
At the Interbank Foreign Exchange, the local currency opened at a low of 70.03 a dollar, down from its previous close of 69.81, and weakened further to trade at a 70.08, down by 27 paise.
Forex dealers said increased demand for the U.S. currency from importers and its gains against other currencies overseas on expectations of rising U.S. interest rates, put pressure on the rupee.
With the U.S. economy continuing to grow and the job market strengthening further, many Fed members said they likely will need to raise the benchmark interest rate again “soon,” according to the minutes of the Fed policy meeting early this month.
Forex market was shut yesterday on account of Bakri Id.
Meanwhile, the BSE benchmark Sensex rallied by 201.88 points, or 0.52%, to quote at an all-time high of 38,487.63 in early trade. The broader NSE Nifty breached the 11,600-mark for the first time.