Indian rupee weakens to above 62 per US dollar

Indian rupee weakens to above 62 per US dollarThe Indian rupee slipped to hit more than 62 per US dollar in early morning trade on Monday, ahead of the presentation of interim budget by Finance Minister P. Chidambaram.

The local currency was trading at 62.06 per US dollar on Monday, down from its close of 61.9250/9350 against the American currency on Friday last week. The country's equity benchmark BSE Sensex was trading 0.35 per cent higher at 20,438.87 points.

Forex dealers largely expect Mr. Chidambaram to stick to his fiscal deficit goal of 4.8 per cent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP). But they are also anxious about market borrowing numbers for fiscal year 2014-15.

A forex dealer with a government-run lender said, "Big expenditure numbers will be negative for the rupee."

While fresh demand for the US dollar ahead of the presentation of interim Budget for the financial year of 2014-15 put pressure on the local currency, the dollar's weakness against other major currencies overseas capped the rupee's decline.

The yield on the government's 10-year benchmark bond was trading at 8.811 per cent on Monday morning, as compared with its Friday's close of 8.809 per cent.