Rupee gains 9 paise to 61.02 Vs dollar in late morning deals

Extending its gaining spell, the rupee on Friday rose 9 paise to trade at three month-high of 61.02 against the US dollar in morning deals on persistent selling of the American currency by banks and exporters amid surging local equity market.

Sustained capital inflows in stock market boosted the rupee sentiment, a dealer said.

The domestic unit resumed higher at 61.01 per dollar as against the last closing level of 61.11 at the Interbank Foreign Exchange market.

It gained further to 60.94 before quoting at 61.02 per dollar at 10:45am. It hovered in a range of 61.11 and 60.94 per dollar during the late morning deals.

In New York, the US dollar declined late yesterday as the European Central Bank president Mario Draghi continued to brush off the threat of deflation, decreasing the chance of further easing in the short term.

Meanwhile, the BSE-30 share index Sensex rallied 207.55 points, or 0.96%, to 21,721.42 at 10:45am.