Rupee falls from 15-month high

8220;We can8217;t go just one way. The non-deliverable forward gap is closing out and the dollar is a little stronger across the globe today,8221; said Nitesh Kumar,an inter-bank dealer with Development Credit Bank.

8220;We shouldn8217;t break 45.50,there would be some stops there,while on the upside 45.85 should hold for today,8221; he said.

One-month offshore non-deliverable forward contracts were 45.77/81,little changed from the onshore spot rate.

Usually when the gap between the two rates widens,banks with access to both markets buy dollars at a cheaper rate in the offshore market and sell them onshore to arbitrage the price difference,boosting the rupee in the spot market.

These inflows had been one of the main drivers for the rupee8217;s rally this week,but the gap narrowed on Friday,providing little incentive for that trade.

Asian currencies were mostly rangebound versus the dollar.

The index of the dollar against six major currencies was up 0.1 per cent.

Equities eased 0.1 per cent as fears of rupee appreciation pulled down outsourcers and as energy giant Reliance Industries slid after report it has sweetened its offer to buy a controlling stake in LyondellBasell.

Foreign fund investments into local shares are a key driver for the rupee. In 2009,inflows of more than 17 billion,helped the rupee surge 12.2 per cent from a record low of 52.2. The unit gained 4.7 per cent on the year.

In the currency futures market,the most traded near-month contracts on the National Stock Exchange and MCX-SX were quoting at 45.8525 and 45.8500 respectively,with the total traded volume on the two exchanges at about 760 million.

Combined volumes on the two exchanges had touched a record high of 7 billion on Thursday.