The Indian rupee weakened to an all-time low of 51 per dollar in afternoon trade on Friday, weighed down by heavy dollar demand from importers to meet month-end commitments and losses in local shares.
At 12:34 p.m. (0704 GMT), the partially convertible rupee <INR=IN> had recovered slightly to 50.87/88, having been lifted off a low of 51.00 by buying from state-run banks which dealers said was likely to have been on behalf of the central bank.
Asia’s third-largest economy expanded 5.3 percent in the December quarter from a year earlier, slowing sharply from the previous quarter’s 7.6 percent as the global economic crisis cut demand and exports.
Today, the rupee fell to a new record low of 51.14 against the dollar, breaching its previous record of 50.62 hit on December 02. If the Indian currency weakens further, it may likely target the 51.5 level. The dollar-rupee pair closed yesterday’s New York session at 50.51.