Rupee on Monday snapped three days of gains and closed 37 paise lower, the most in a week, to 59.41 against the dollar. The currency also declined amid fresh month-end dollar demand from importers and a drop in local stocks. A weak dollar overseas ahead of the US Federal Open Market Committee meet this week and fresh capital inflows restricted the rupee’s fall, a forex dealer said.
At the Interbank Foreign Exchange Market, the rupee opened lower at 59.10 a dollar from the previous close of 59.04. After touching a high of 59.08, it declined to a low of 59.45 and settled at 59.41, a fall of 37 paise or 0.63 per cent. The rupee last fell by 37 on July 22. The rupee had gained 72 paise, or 1.2 per cent, in the past three sessions.
Meanwhile, Sensex tumbled 155 points to end at a nearly three-week low of 19,593.28. The index fell on selling in FMCG, PSU, metal and realty stocks, while weak Asian cues amid mixed European openings also weighed on market sentiment. Nifty index fell 54.55 points to 5,831.65.
Foreign institutional investors injected Rs 278.04 crore on Friday, while they pulled out Rs 231.77 crore today, as per provisional data with the stock exchanges.