Mumbai: The rupee on Friday fell by 18 paise to close at 69.46 against the US currency on strengthening of the greenback in overseas markets and rising crude oil prices.
Forex traders said that weakened Asian currencies also added to the pressure on the domestic unit.
However, gains in domestic equities supported the rupee and capped its losses to some extent, they added.
At the interbank foreign exchange (forex) market, the domestic currency opened higher at 69.23 per dollar, but lost ground during the day to fall to 69.52. The rupee finally settled at 69.46, down 18 paise over its previous close.
The rupee had settled at 69.28 against the US dollar Thursday.
