Tuesday August 11, 02:40 PM

Rupee trims fall as shares rise over 1 pct

MUMBAI (Reuters) - The rupee trimmed its fall in afternoon trade on Tuesday as the sharemarket surged more than 1 percent reversing losses of over 1 percent earlier as some long-term investors booked profits.

* At 2:10 p.m., the partially convertible rupee was at 47.90/91 per dollar, off an early low of 48.04, its lowest since July 31 but still weaker than its previous close of 47.82/83.

* Dealers said a steady dollar overseas was weighing on he rupee. The dollar held firm against a basket of currencies on Tuesday with investors still unwinding short positions after last week's better-than-expected U.S. jobs report.

* Shares were trading up 1.3 percent as some long-term investors took advantage of a 5.6 percent drop over the past three sessions to enter the market.

* However, dealers said dollar demand from importers was preventing a further upside for the rupee.

* In the currency futures market, the most traded near-month contract on the National Stock Exchange (^NSEI : 5245.9 +14) and MCX-SX was quoting at 47.9675 and 47.9650 respectively, with the total traded volume on the two exchanges at about $1 billion.+

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