Sri Lankan Rupee Ends Lower On Importer Dollar Demand

The Sri Lankan rupee ended slightly weaker on Monday as dollar demand from importers outpaced selling of the U.S. currency by exporters, dealers said.

The spot rupee ended at 152.95/153.05 per dollar, compared with Friday’s close of 152.70/80.

“The month-end importer demand was there and it was throughout the day. It was the supply constraints which weakened the rupee,” said a currency dealer requesting anonymity.

The rupee has been under pressure since January after the central bank stopped defending the currency and started buying dollars to build up the country’s depleted foreign currency reserves.

The island nation has seen 17.7 billion rupees ($115.84 million) of net inflows into equities this year as of Monday’s close, and 17.3 billion rupees worth inflows this year into government securities as of Sept. 20, official data showed. ($1 = 152.8000 Sri Lankan rupees) (Reporting by Ranga Sirilal and Shihar Aneez; Editing by Biju Dwarakanath)

Courtesy : reuters