Rupee at another low of 81.94 per dollar as US Fed talks up rate hikes

RBI may have sold more than $1 bln in FX mkt, prevented rupee from breaching 82/$1

The rupee came perilously close to breaching the 82 per dollar mark on Wednesday as comments by various officials of the Federal Reserve suggested that the US central bank’s policy tightening cycle had a long way to go yet.

The rupee closed at a new low of 81.94 per US dollar on Wednesday, weakening 0.4 per cent. The domestic currency, which had settled at 81.58 per dollar on Tuesday, touched an intra-day low of 81.95 per dollar.

If not for heavy market interventions by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in the latter half of trade –the central bank is