Rupee down 27 paise Vs dollar in early trade

The rupee today lost 27 paise to 60.70 against the dollar in early trade on the Interbank Foreign Exchange market on higher demand for the US currency from importers, even as RBI took more measures to curb the domestic unit's fall.

Forex dealers said apart from higher demand from importers for the American currency, the dollar strengthening against other currencies in the global market on encouraging economic data, also weighed on the rupee but a higher opening in the domestic equity market limited the rupee's fall.

Meanwhile, the Reserve Bank, in yet another step to rescue the rupee, yesterday tightened hedging rules by making it mandatory for foreign institutional investors to obtain the consent of holders of participatory notes and derivative instruments before hedging.

The domestic currency had closed lower by three paise at 60.43 against the dollar in the previous session.

Meanwhile, the BSE benchmark Sensex rose by 134.51 points, or 0.69 per cent, at 19,451.70 in the early trade today.