Rupee weakens to 66.92 against US dollar in early trade.

Mumbai: The Indian rupee on Monday weakened marginally against the US dollar, tracking losses in its Asian peers. This is the third consecutive session when the rupee is trading lower.

The home currency opened at 66.92. At 9.15am, the rupee was trading at 66.92 against the US dollar, down 0.04% from its previous close of 66.89. So far this year, it fell 1.1%.

Offshore yuan neared a record low, with most other Asian currencies weakening as the dollar climbed to seven-month highs against a basket of currencies.

Japanese yen was down 0.15%, China offshore 0.15%, South Korean won 0.12%, Taiwan dollar 0.11%, China renminbi 0.1%, Malaysian ringgit 0.08%, Philippines peso 0.08% and Indonesian rupiah 0.06%. However, Thai baht was up 0.21% and Singapore dollar 0.06%.

India’s benchmark Sensex index was trading at 28,128 points, up 0.18% or 60.04 points from its previous close. So far this year, it has gained 7.5%.

So far this year, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) have sold $784.60 million in debt and bought $7.45 billion in equity.

The benchmark 10-year government bond yield was trading at 6.761% compared to Friday’s close of 6.76%. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions.

The dollar index, which measures the US currency’s strength against major currencies, was trading at 98.816, up 0.39% from its previous close of 98.315.

Source : livemint.com