Mumbai, March 18: The rupee today weakened by 10 paise against the US currency to close at 45.44/45 on increased dollar buying by importers, mainly oil refiners.
Dealers said the dollar strengthened against major rivals overseas which also weighed on the rupee.
At the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market, the local currency opened weak at 45.40/42 a dollar. It moved in a range of 45.38 to 45.53 during the day.
Dollar buying by importers, mainly oil refiners, amid US unit’s gain in New York yesterday affected the rupee value, dealers said.
The euro was down today against dollar due to uncertainty over a resolution to its debt problems and soured sentiment for the single currency.
Further, weakness in domestic stock markets also partly weighed on the rupee, dealers said. The benchmark Sensex, which was down by over 70 points in afternoon trade, ended up by 29.
–Agencies