Rupee hits three-week low against US dollar

Mumbai: The rupee on Wednesday weakened for the fourth session to hit a three-week low against the US dollar after foreign institutional investors (FIIs) liquidated their investments in the domestic markets.

At 2pm, the rupee was trading at 64.17 a dollar, down 0.06% from its Tuesday’s close of 64.13. The rupee opened at 64.18 a dollar and touched a low of 64.26, a level last seen on 16 August.

Rupee came under pressure as FIIs sold nearly $250 million in local equities since 1 September and took dollars out of the country amid geopolitical tensions between the US and North Korea.

The 10-year bond yield was at 6.488% compared to its previous close of 6.5%. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions.

The benchmark Sensex index fell 0.36% or 113.68 points to 31,695.87. So far this year, it has risen over 19.1%.

So far this year, the rupee has gained 5.7%, while FIIs bought $6.91 billion and $19.87 billion in equity and debt markets, respectively.

Asian currencies were trading mixed after US Federal Reserve officials called for caution on further policy tightening.

Malaysian ringgit was up 0.32%, Japanese yen 0.18% and China renminbi 0.09%. However, South Korean won was down 0.17%, Thai baht 0.04% and Taiwan dollar 0.04%.

The dollar index, which measures the US currency’s strength against major currencies, was trading at 92.313, up 0.07% from its previous close of 92.252.