Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB), the country´s monetary authority, which adjusts the value of rupee depending on the movement of Indian currency vis-à-vis US dollar, set the price of the greenback at Rs 83.30 for Tuesday. On Monday, the exchange rate was fixed at Rs 82.43. [break]
Rupee had devalued to Rs 84 per US dollar during March 2009.
“Rupee fell mainly due to drop in the value of Indian currency against US dollar,” said NRB spokesperson Bhaskar Mani Gyawali. Although he did not elaborate further, officials keeping track of currency markets attributed the drop to weakening of stock and sharp rise in demand for dollar by oil importers in India.
Rupee has been on a free fall in recent months mainly as dollar gained sharply against Indian currency. This has caused the cost of imports to jump, hurting consumers dearly.
Nepalis had braved inflation of 9.6 percent last fiscal year. Although the central bank officials said inflation was moderating of late, the latest trend of currency movement could disfigure it again.
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