Rupee starts 2010 lower; seen in a range

Mumbai : The rupee opened 2010 on a slightly bearish note on Friday on the back of the dollar's gains against major currencies in New York trade and residual month-end demand for the US unit from refiners and importers.
With Asian markets and the local stock market shut, trading is expected to be muted.
At 9:04 a.m. the partially convertible rupee was at 46.61/62 per dollar, weaker than 46.53/54 at close on Thursday.
The dollar rose to its highest level in more than three months against the yen on Thursday after data showed US jobless claims fell to their lowest since mid-2008, affirming optimism about the economy.

Oil is India's biggest import and refiners are the largest buyers of dollars in the domestic currency market.