MUMBAI: The Indian rupee reversed early gains and was trading weaker on Thursday afternoon, tracking a more than 2 percent fall in domestic shares which raised concerns about foreign funds withdrawing their investments.
* At 3:15 p.m., the partially convertible rupee was at 45.24/25 per dollar, weaker than its 45.09/10 close on Wednesday, when it had dropped 1 percent on the day -- its worst one-day fall since Nov. 12.
* Indian shares extended losses to more than 2.3 percent on Thursday, with shares in financials including ICICI Bank leading the losses, as investors pared positions due to global economic uncertainty.
* The dollar lost steam on Thursday as a sizzling rise in U.S. bond yields appeared to pause for now, while the Australian dollar surged on data showing the country's employment is growing far faster than expected.
* Traders would continue to watch the dollar's moves versus majors, especially the euro, for cues. The index of the dollar against six major currencies was marginally lower.
* One-month offshore non-deliverable forward contracts were quoted at 45.47, weaker than the onshore spot rate, suggesting a bearish near-term outlook.
* In the currency futures market, the most traded near-month dollar-rupee contracts on the National Stock Exchange , MCX-SX and United Stock Exchange were all at 45.39.
* The total traded volume on the three exchanges, inclusive of all available contracts, was at a low $3.5 illion.
