BLBG: Rupee Falls a Fourth Day as Stocks Drop on Dubai Debt Concern
By V. Ramakrishnan and Anil Varma
Dec. 9 (Bloomberg) -- India’s rupee fell for a fourth day, the longest losing streak since October, on concern investors will sell emerging-market assets after Dubai World’s property unit posted a loss and Greece’s debt rating was cut.
The MSCI Asia Pacific Index of regional shares lost 0.7 percent after Dubai’s Nakheel PJSC posted a first-half loss of 13.4 billion dirham ($3.65 billion), while its owner met creditors to renegotiate $26 billion of debt. Fitch Ratings downgraded Greece’s credit ranking one level to BBB+. The rupee also declined as a key gauge that tracks the dollar’s strength rose, signaling increased demand for the greenback.
“The rupee is weaker today mainly due to decline in Asian stocks,” said Krishnamurthy Harihar, treasurer at the Indian unit of FirstRand Ltd., South Africa’s second-largest financial services company. “The dollar continues to be in favor.”
The rupee weakened 0.3 percent to 46.8325 per dollar as of 10:27 a.m. in Mumbai, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The currency has lost 1.2 percent this week.
Offshore contracts indicate bets the rupee will trade at 46.87 to the dollar in a month, compared with expectations of 46.67 yesterday. Forwards are agreements in which assets are bought and sold at current prices for future delivery. Non- deliverable contracts are settled in dollars rather than the local currency.
The Dollar Index, which the ICE uses to track the greenback against the currencies of six major U.S. trading partners, has advanced 1.7 percent since Nov. 30. It declined in the five months through November.
To contact the reporters on this story: Anil Varma in Mumbai at avarma3@bloomberg.net.