Rupee hits one-month low on corporate dollar demand

Mumbai: The rupee weakened to its lowest level in a little over a month on Tuesday morning as private oil firms bought dollars while a broadly stronger dollar also hurt sentiment for the local unit. The partially convertible rupee was at 61.84/85 per dollar compared with its close of 61.73/74 on Monday. It touched 61.8550, its weakest level since Oct. 16.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of major currencies, rose to 87.999, pushing closer to a four-year high of 88.267 set on Friday. Traders said there is a strong support for the rupee around 61.90 levels, which would keep the unit in a 61.75 to 61.95 range for the day. Some dealers expect the Reserve Bank of India to step in to support the rupee around 61.90 levels.