Rupee Slips On Global Worries

The rupee on August 16 and closed about 60 paise lower at 41.36/37 against Tuesday''s close of 40.7450/7550, following a sell-off in the domestic stock market. The rupee had opened at around 41 levels on Thursday. It had touched levels of 41.20 in June this year

Following the sub-prime crisis in the US and sharp fall in other Asian markets, foreign investors are pulling out of assets such as the Indian rupee. Though some public sector banks were seen selling dollars, it was unlikely that it was on behalf of the Reserve Bank of India. Among global currencies, the pound and euro lost ground against the dollar, while the yen gained, as ''risk averse'' investors flocked towards it. In the forward premia market, the six-month premium closed at 1.81 per cent (1.96 per cent) and the 12-month at 1.87 per cent (1.95 per cent).