The Indian rupee slipped to a six-month low on Monday as falls in the stock market and fears of a U.S. recession sparked concern that overseas investors would sell local equity holdings and repatriate their funds.
At 10:40 a.m., the partially convertible rupee was trading at 40.685/695 per dollar, off a low of 40.715, its lowest since Sept. 10, according to Reuters data. It ended at 40.525/535 per dollar on Friday.
"Obviously, the Sensex is down, much like the Dow Jones and Asian markets," said a trader with a state-run bank.
"Foreigners are going to be pulling out their money," he added.
India's benchmark share index was down more than 3 percent on Monday and other Asian markets also fell as sentiment was hit by worries about the U.S. economic outlook after weak U.S. jobs data.
Foreign buying of local shares are a key driver of the rupee. Foreigners have sold $3.4 billion in local equities so far this year, after buying a record $17.4 billion in 2007.
"Also, we've seen Indian oil companies buying dollars today for crude oil purchases," the trader also said.
U.S. oil prices were above $105 a barrel, within sight of Friday's record high of $106.54. India imports more than two-thirds of its oil, and rising crude prices could widen the trade deficit and put downward pressure on the rupee.
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