MUMBAI, Jan 1: The Indian rupee ended flat on Tuesday as the closure of most markets in Asia for New Year’s Day left the currency bereft of direction, though trading would pick up in coming days, dealers said.

The partially convertible rupee ended at 39.41/42 per dollar, unchanged from the previous close.

The rupee rose 12.3 per cent against the dollar in 2007. It was a very dull day today with nothing to really trade on, said a dealer with a foreign bank.

We should see some dollar supplies hit the market tomorrow, the dealer added.

The local benchmark equity index ended flat, but was trading near record levels, and further buoyancy in the share market could boost the rupee, dealers said.

Data showed foreign investors bought a record $17.4 billion of local equities in 2007, including more than $1 billion in December, buoyed by expectations the economy will grow close to 9 per cent in the fiscal year that ends in March.

Rapid gains in the rupee were unlikely though, as the central bank is widely believed to be committed to intervening to prevent any sharp appreciation in the rupee.

The Reserve Bank of India played an active role in 2007, buying $64.5 billion in intervention in the first 10 months of last year in a bid to temper the rupee’s ascent.

A Reuters poll of 22 market participants in November forecast that robust investment flows would see the rupee strengthen further against the dollar this year, and end 2008 at 37.63.—Reuters