Rupee declines 39 paise to 87.50 on rate cut bets

The rupee on Wednesday declined nearly 39 paise to 87.50 against the dollar as traders are expecting the first repo rate cut in nearly five years on Friday.

- ENS ECONOMIC BUREAU @ Mumbai

A topsy-turvy equity market only added to the pain for the unit.

The rupee opened rather flat, 5 paise lower from the previous close at 87.1263 against the dollar. But by afternoon panic gripped traders and the rupee crossed the 87.50 mark as more and more news of near certain rate cut panicked them.

The rupee, which has already lost more than 4% since October, recoupled on RBI intervention but closed with deep cuts over at 87.4650, down 0.4%.