Rupee weakens against dollar on sustained greenback demand

The rupee weakened by 16 paise against the American currency in late morning deals today amid sustained demand for dollar from importers and some banks, on the back higher dollar overseas.

The rupee opened lower at 55.65 per dollar as against the previous closing level of 55.57 at the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market.

It hovered in a range of 55.64 and 55.73 in late morning deals and was still quoting at 55.73 per dollar at 1100 am, down 16 paise over its last close.

"Consistent demand from importers and some banks putting pressure on rupee sentiment," dealers said. In the international market, the US dollar rose against the Japanese yen in the early trade marking a break in the yen's recent gains.

Meanwhile, the BSE Sensex was trading slightly lower by 8 points, or 0.04 per cent, quoting 20,007.90 at 11.05 am.