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Rupee weakens again as Reliance row hurts shares
India's rupee weakened for a second day as declines in the benchmark share index added to concern a corporate dispute between billionaire brothers Anil Ambani and Mukesh Ambani will discourage investors.
- Bloomberg
- Published: 22:33 July 29, 2009
Mumbai: India's rupee weakened for a second day as declines in the benchmark share index added to concern a corporate dispute between billionaire brothers Anil Ambani and Mukesh Ambani will discourage investors.
The currency fell the most in a week as the Bombay Stock Exchange's Sensitive Index dropped for a third day, taking its losses this week to 1.3 per cent.
Anil Ambani, chairman of Reliance Natural Resources, accused India's petroleum ministry of siding with his brother's Reliance Industries in a row over the sale of natural gas, saying it was "partisan and biased."
"The rupee may weaken as the stock market reflects investors' mounting concerns about the potential impact of the Reliance gas dispute on fund flows," said Sudarshan Bhatt, chief currency trader at state-owned Corporation Bank in Mumbai.
The rupee declined 0.5 per cent to 48.425 per dollar at the 5pm close in Mumbai, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Indian stocks fell for a third day, led by Tata Motors and DLF after investors judged recent gains excessive.
The Bombay Stock Exchange's Sensitive Index, or Sensex, fell 158.48, or 1 per cent, to 15,173.46. The S&P CNX Nifty Index on the National Stock Exchange lost 1.1 per cent to 4,513.50. The BSE 200 Index retreated 1.2 per cent to 1,861.71.
The Sensex has climbed over the past two weeks as 16 of the 21 companies on the 30-member gauge that have reported their first-quarter results so far have beaten analysts' expectations.
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