COLOMBO: The Sri Lankan rupee traded slightly firmer on Monday as inward remittances outpaced seasonal importer dollar demand, dealers said.
The spot rupee was traded at 131.15/20 at 0644 GMT, firmer from Friday's close of 131.20/30 per dollar, which was around its lowest level since Oct. 10.
"We see a lot of inward remittances coming in and the central bank was not seen (intervening)," a currency dealer said on condition of anonymity. Dealers last week said the central bank did not allow the spot rupee to trade beyond 131.20 per dollar with state banks selling dollars for selected banks at that level.
The three-day forward or spot next, which was in focus after the spot was held steady, was slightly up at 131.20/25 per dollar at 0646 GMT, from Friday's close of 131.20/30.
Central bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal on Wednesday told Reuters that the monetary authority would intervene to keep the currency stable when there was excess volatility after it hit a seven-week low on importer dollar demand despite intervention by state banks.
The spot was kept steady at 131.10 for three weeks through Nov. 25 before it was allowed to trade at 131.15.
The rupee hit a record low of 135.20 on Aug. 28, but has managed to stem further losses and has gained 3.09 percent since then.
At 0647 GMT, Sri Lanka's main stock index was trading 0.24 percent or 13.67 points firmer at 5,788.76.
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