THE rupee continued to slide against the dollar last week, as equity investors continued to rely on the foreign currency to balance out the decline in their stock portfolios.
Meanwhile, after the central bank’s intervention, the differential between the dollar rates in the interbank and open markets continued to narrow down.
On the interbank market, the rupee commenced the week by losing 18 paisas for buying and 20 paisas for selling, sending the greenback up at Rs104.18 and Rs104.22 against the previous week’s close of Rs104.00 and Rs104.02.
The rupee shed two paisas for buying and remained unchanged for selling in the second trading session, as the dollar ended the day at Rs104.20 and Rs104.22. The rupee-dollar parity remained unchanged at this level in the third trading session.
The rupee depreciated by 24 paisas against the dollar in interbank dealings but stayed unchanged in the open market last week
The rupee posted another loss of two paisas in the fourth trading session, sending the dollar up at Rs104.22 and Rs104.24. It dipped by a further two paisas in the last trading session, as the dollar closed the week at Rs104.24 and Rs104.26.
The dollar appreciated by 24 paisas against the rupee in the interbank market last week, and by 2.4pc in August. Since January, the rupee has so far depreciated by 3.3pc against the dollar in the interbank market.
In the open market, the rupee started last week by remaining unchanged for buying and shedding five paisas for selling, sending the dollar to Rs104.50 and Rs104.75 against the prior week’s close of Rs104.50 and Rs104.70. The rupee-dollar parity then remained unchanged at this level in the next two sessions.
In the fourth trading session, the rupee recovered five paisas for buying and 10 paisas for selling, as the greenback dropped to Rs104.45 and Rs104.65 as global investors tentatively stepped back into equities, tempering demand for the forex currency.
However, the rupee dropped five paisas in the last trading session, allowing the dollar to close the week at Rs104.50 and Rs104.70. As a result, the rupee remained unchanged against the dollar in the open market last week. However, the dollar appreciated nearly 1.7pc against the rupee in August.
Meanwhile, the rupee started the week against the euro by losing 50 paisas, sending the single currency up at Rs116.70 and Rs117.70 against the previous week’s close of Rs116.20 and Rs117.20. The rupee lost another 55 paisas in the second trading session, as the euro ended the day at Rs117.25 and Rs118.25.
The rupee dropped by a further 25 paisas in the third trading session, allowing the euro to rise to Rs117.50 and Rs118.50. However, it regained 50 paisas in the fourth trading session, as the euro dipped to Rs117.00 and Rs118.00.
The rupee then rose by 100 paisas in the last trading session, as the euro closed the week at Rs116.00 and Rs117.00.
