Rupee weakens by 10 paise against dollar in early trade

The Indian rupee weakened on Tuesday by another 10 paise to 48.07 against the greenback in early trade today on fresh month-end dollar demand amid strong equity markets.

The domestic currency resumed weak against its last close of 47.97/98 a dollar and later fell to 48.07 before being quoted at 48.01/02 a dollar in late morning deals.

Dealers at the Interbank Foreign Exchange market said oil refiners bought dollar at the current levels for their monthly import payments as the American unit surged against a basket of currencies in overseas markets.

They said the rupee, however, drew support from a rally in local stocks and recovered part of its losses.

Sustained capital inflows into equity this month also supported the rupee sentiment.

Global oil prices were steady at $67 a barrel in Asian trade this morning.