The Indian rupee retreated from one-and-half week highs on Thursday as sharp losses in local shares raised worries over sustained foreign fund outflows, while defence-related dollar demand also weighed. The partially convertible rupee closed at 45.24/25 per dollar, 0.2 percent below its 45.13/14 close on Wednesday. The rupee rose as much as 45.04, its strongest since January 4, in early trade.
One-month offshore non-deliverable forward contracts were quoted at 45.53, weaker than the onshore spot rate. In the currency futures market, the most traded near-month dollar-rupee contracts on the National Stock Exchange and MCX-SX both closed at 45.2525, while those on the United Stock Exchange ended at 45.25, with the total traded volume on the three exchanges at about $5.4 billion.