Mumbai: The Indian rupee lost ground in afternoon trading on Monday, falling below its Friday’s close after remaining firm for the most part of the day.
At 2.10pm, the partially convertible currency was trading at 62.3075 per dollar, down from its previous close of 62.29. The domestic currency had opened at 62.155 per dollar and strengthened to as much as 62.0762.
According to currency dealers, the rupee lost ground on demand for the greenback. Importers and refiners queued up to buy dollars.
In morning trading, the rupee and its Asian peers had gained after data showed jobs in the US were not being created as fast as had been expected.
In afternoon trading, the dollar index, which measures the US currency’s strength against major currencies, was trading at 80.614, down 0.1% from the previous close of 80.691.
Surveys by Bloomberg forecast that India’s industrial production contracted by 1% in December after shrinking 2.1% in the previous month. A separate survey by the same agency predicted that consumer prices rose 9.16% in January, compared with 9.87% in December. Both data are expected on Wednesday.
The yield on India’s 10-year benchmark bond was trading at 8.702%, compared with its previous close of 8.737%.
The BSE’s benchmark index, the Sensex, was trading at 20,373.16 points, down 0.02% from the previous close.
