(Reuters) - The Sri Lankan rupee ended little changed on Friday as early importer dollar demand was offset by dollar sales by private banks in late trade after two state banks defended the currency by selling the greenback at 130.65, dealers said. Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal said on Wednesday that the rupee would be stable throughout this year due to rise in inflows through exports and remittances into the island nation. The spot rupee ended at 130.62/65 per dollar, little changed from Thursday's close of 130.63/68. Some dealers said the three-day forward, or spot-next, traded actively as they did not want to trade above 130.65 rupees a dollar, which is seen as the central bank's desired level for the local currency. Contrary to market expectations, the local currency has been gaining ahead of the traditional new year in April. Usually, the rupee falls in March and early April due to higher import demand ahead of the Sinhala-Tamil new year. Sri Lanka kept its policy rates steady at multi-year lows on Friday, as expected, as it hopes that slowing private sector credit expansion will rebound and push up the country's growth pace. Dealers said lack of credit demand for imports will help reduce downward pressure on the rupee. The currency has gained 0.32 percent in the 17 sessions through Friday, Thomson Reuters data showed. It has been on a rising trend since Feb. 27 amid weak demand for dollars from importers, dealers said. Dealers said the rupee was expected to trade in a range of 130.50 to 130.75 in the near term. (Reporting by Ranga Sirilal and Shihar Aneez; Editing by Sunil Nair)

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