The rupee on Monday slipped 29 paise, logging its biggest drop in nearly three weeks, to end at 60.01 versus the dollar on rising demand for the US currency from custodian banks.
The rupee fell despite the stock benchmark Sensex ending above the 26,000-level for the first time in its history ahead of the Union Budget.
At the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market, the domestic unit commenced lower at 59.80, which was also its day’s high, from last Friday’s close of 59.72. It declined further to a low of 60.04, before concluding at 60.01 — a fall of 29 paise or 0.49 per cent.
Previously, it had tumbled by 36 paise or 0.60 per cent on June 18, 2014.
The dollar index, however, was trading down by 0.03 per cent against its major global rivals
Meanwhile, the premium for forward dollar remained weak on continued receipts by exporters.
The benchmark six-month premium payable in December eased to 248-250 paise from previous close of 251.5-253.5 paise.
Far-forward contracts maturing in June, 2015 also dropped to 495-497 paise from 498.5-501.5 paise.
The Reserve Bank of India fixed the reference rate for dollar at 59.9455 and for the euro at 81.3923.
The rupee dipped further against the pound to 102.79 from 102.35 previously while fell back to 81.60 per euro from 81.18. It also declined to 58.87 per 100 Japanese yen from 58.52.
