Rupee hits 6-week low as dollar climbs

The rupee touched a six-week low of 45.46 but recovered some of the lost ground amid suspected intervention by the RBI. The partially convertible Indian currency closed at 45.30, after hitting its lowest since March 26, but was well below last Friday's close of 44.37. At Thursday's low, the rupee was down 1.2% on the day. Some dealers also that said exporters may have sold dollars taking advantage of the sudden fall. The rupee was also weighed down by persistent selling in Indian stocks and the dollar's gains overseas amid simmering eurozone debt worries.

The rupee fell this week on speculation that importers will step up purchases of the US currency to pay for shipments after an index that tracks the greenback's strength touched a one-year high. The rupee weakened as India’s benchmark stock index headed for the worst week in more than three months, spurring concern that global investors are exiting emerging-market assets in favor of the US currency. The Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against the currencies of six major American trading partners, rose as high as 84.307, the highest level since May 2009.

The euro extended its losses against the dollar and yen, dropping to a fresh 14-month low below US$1.2770 and hitting a two-month low against the Japanese currency as concerns about debt problems in the euro zone mounted.