The rupee on Wednesday slipped by 33 paise — its fourth straight daily loss — to close at 62.25 against dollar amid RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan’s comment that an “excessively strong rupee” is undesirable as it triggers disinflationary pressures.
Heavy demand for the American currency also hit the local unit, which had earlier in the session hit one-month high of 61.67 after a surprise rate cut by RBI citing easing inflation pressures and steps taken by government to revive growth.
However, it suffered a setback on the back heavy dollar demand from importers and state-owned banks. The rupee plummeted to hit an intra-day low of 62.28 at the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market before ending at 62.25 per dollar — a fall of 33 paise, or 0.53 per cent.
In stock market, both the benchmark indices — BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty finished sharply lower at 29380.73 and 8922.65, respectively after climbing historic highs in early trade.