The Indian rupee ended slightly lower on Thursday as oil firms and other importers bought dollars, but dealers said the US unit's weakness against the yen limited losses. The yen rose against the dollar after Japan's top financial diplomat said there was no reason for the Japanese currency to weaken given a recovering economy.
The partially convertible rupee ended at 44.885/44.895 per dollar, off an intraday low of 44.96. On Wednesday, the rupee closed at 44.86/44.87 - a level it last tested in early May, according to Reuters data. "Oil companies bought dollars through the day. However, the dollar's weakness to the yen in the afternoon boosted sentiment for the Indian rupee," said the chief dealer of a private bank.
The rupee has already risen by about 4.7 percent from a three-year low of 47.04 in July, helped by foreign investments of about $3.8 billion in local equities since August.