Rupee drops further by 15 paise against dollar

Extending its losses for the fourth straight day, the rupee fell by another 15 paise to 62.29 against the dollar in early trade today on the Interbank Foreign Exchange market due to strengthening of American unit overseas.

Dealers attributed the rupee's fall to dollar rising to five-year high against the yen overseas after the US Federal Reserve's decision to start tapering its monetary stimulus programme.

They said, however, a higher opening in the domestic equity market capped the fall. The rupee had lost five paise in yesterday's trade to close at 62.14, the lowest level in more than two weeks, amid weakness in local stocks after the US Federal Reserve said it would cut its bond purchases.

Meanwhile, the benchmark BSE Sensex rose by 117.10 points, or 0.56 per cent, at 20,825.72 in early trade today.