Our Bureau

Mumbai, Nov. 24

The spot rupee was choppy during the day but ended almost unchanged on Friday.

The euro and the sterling strengthened against the dollar, which helped the rupee gain, though during day trade it weakened as some banks bought dollars to cover short positions. The rupee opened at 44.70. Dollar buying reportedly by HDFC Bank and Deutsche Bank pushed the rupee lower to 44.96. It recovered later to close at 44.70 against the previous close of 44.69. "All those having short positions squared by buying dollars," said a dealer with a private bank. The euro broke the $1.30-level mark against the dollar. The sterling also appreciated against the dollar on thin volumes, the dealer said. The six-month forward premium closed at 1.96 per cent (1.94 per cent) and the one-year was unchanged at 1.8 per cent. Next week, the rupee is likely to be strong and trade around 44.5 levels, said the dealer.

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