Rupee rises from 10-month low

Saturday, 27 July 2013 00:18 -     - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

REUTERS: The Sri Lankan rupee recovered on Friday from its 10-month low hit in the previous session on exporter dollar conversion and as commercial banks sold the greenback to cover rupee liquidity shortage, currency dealers said. The rupee ended at Rs. 131.60/70, recovering from Thursday’s close of Rs. 131.65/75, its lowest close since 19 September. “The rupee is stronger for the day due to exporter dollar conversions and banks’ dollar sales to cover rupee liquidity,” said a currency dealer. Dealers said rupee liquidity was tight and the Central Bank pumped Rs. 3 billion ($ 22.79 million) into the market through a reverse repo auction at 8.28%. Dealers expect the rupee to move in a range of Rs. 131.50 to Rs. 132 in the short term and said the currency would continue to depreciate unless the Central Bank took some monetary tightening measures. The rupee has fallen 4.1% since 7 June as foreign investors pulled out of Sri Lanka’s treasury bonds due to a rise in US treasury yields.

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