Rupee rises by 12 paise against dollar

Mumbai: The rupee on Wednesday appreciated by 12 paise to a fresh 19-month high at 44.33 a dollar in early trade on continued capital inflows by foreign funds in stock markets.

At the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market, the rupee strengthened by 12 paise to 44.33 a dollar, the highest since September 2008. The domestic currency had closed one paise lower at 44.45/46 in the previous session.

Dealers said the rupee strengthened against the US currency largely on continued capital inflows by foreign funds into equities and firming Asian currencies.

Meanwhile, the Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark Sensex regained its 18,000 points level after almost 25 months by adding 67.03 points at 18,008.40 in the opening trade.