Indian Rupee Ended Slightly Cheaper

The Indian rupee ended slightly cheaper at 42.72/73 against the greenback today on month-end dollar demand by oil companies, amid continued weakness in Asian stocks. At the Interbank Foreign Exchange (forex) market, the local currency fluctuated in a wide range of 42.7950 and 42.53 during the day after resuming weak at 42.7900/7950 a dollar from its last close of 42.71/72 a dollar. Dealers said the rupee attempted a smart rally and touched the day''s high of 42.53 in early trade due to heavy dollar selling by foreign banks. However, it failed to retain gains as oil companies stepped in to make month-end dollar purchases, even as equity markets drifted lower with foreign funds heavily unwinding stocks positions.