MUMBAI: Rupee on Tuesday eased by five paise against the US dollar on month-end dollar demand by oil exporters amid a fresh surge in local stocks.
At the Interbank Foreign Exchange market the Indian unit moved in the range of 48.64-48.34 during the day after resuming slightly higher. It ended the day at 48.47/48.
Forex dealers said oil refiners bought dollars at the month-end for their import payments amid tight supplies of the greenback.
The rupee demand also remained weak due to capital outflows during last week, they added.
However, the holiday mood in world markets affected the trading volume at home leading to limited trading activities, the dealers said.
The global crude oil prices traded around USD 40 a barrel in Asian trade today, while the BSE benchmark Sensex closed 183 points higher.
The Sensex closed at 9,716.16 points higher on hopes of announcement of another stimulus package by the government to boost demand shortly.
The Reserve Bank of India, however, fixed the reference rate for the US dollar at Rs 48.50 and for the Single European currency at Rs 67.95.
The rupee premium on the forward dollar dropped sharply on heavy buying by exporters.
The benchmark six-month forward dollar premium payable in May dipped to end at 57-59 paise from 71-73 paise on Monday and the far-forwards maturing in November also tumbled to 84-86 paise from 103-105 paise previously.
Source : The Economic Times