The rupee today fell by 22 paise to end at 52.72/73 against the US currency on renewed dollar demand from importers and some banks despite firm local equity markets.
At the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market, the local currency opened lower at 52.85/86 per dollar from last closing level of Rs 52.50/51 per dollar. It declined further to a low Rs 52.90 before settling at Rs 52.72/73, showing a gain of 0.42%.
Fresh dollar demand from importers mainly oil refiners and some banks affected the rupee value against the dollar, a dealer said.
"Rupee traded weak, mainly taking cues from global markets where dollar traded strong against the major currencies, mainly against euro," Alpari Financial Services (India) CEO Pramit Brahmbhatt said.
In New York, the euro slipped against the dollar on Wednesday, paring deeper losses following the European Central Bank announcement that its first longer-term lending operation garnered strong demand.
The BSE Sensex rose by 128.15 points or 0.82% from its previous close.
