Rupee up 29 paise to end at nearly 12-week high on dollar inflows

Mumbai: The rupee strengthened further by 29 paise to close at a nearly 12-week high of 73.00 against the US dollar on Tuesday, marking its fourth straight session of gain following a firm trend in domestic equities and foreign fund inflows. At the interbank forex market, the local unit opened higher at 73.26 against the greenback and later breached the 72 level in day trade after strong gains in equity markets. The local unit moved in a range of 72.99 to 73.29 before settling at 73.00, the highest closing level since June 9. The rupee has spurted by 124 paise against the dollar in four straight sessions to Tuesday. The unit rose 1.9 per cent in August, its biggest gain since May and tracked Asian and emerging market currencies this month.