* Main share index erases early gains, was up more than 1 pct (Updates to close)
By Anurag Joshi
MUMBAI, Jan 11 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee rose to its highest in more than 15 months on Monday as demand was triggered by the dollar's fall on weak U.S. payrolls data and expectations of steady rates in the United States.
The partially convertible rupee INR=IN ended at 45.34/35 per dollar, off an early high of 45.2850, its strongest since September 2008, but still 0.90 percent above Friday's close of 45.75/76.
"We had a lot of exporters coming and dumping the dollar, which pushed up the rupee. Tomorrow's movement would depend on where the dollar is and how the stocks open," said a senior trader with a foreign bank.
"There were good FII (foreign institutional investor) flows too," he added.
The dollar fell broadly after data on Friday showed U.S. employers cut 85,000 jobs last month and St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank President James Bullard said rates may remain low for quite some time. [USD/]
The index of the dollar .DXY against six major units was down 0.7 percent.
The benchmark BSE equity index .BSESN erased early gains of more than 1 percent to end the day 0.1 percent lower. The index had gained 81 percent in 2009. [.BO]
Foreign fund investments into local shares are a key driver for the rupee. Last year inflows of more than $17 billion helped the rupee climb more than 12 percent from a record low of 52.2 in March, and it rose 4.7 percent on the year as a whole.
So far in 2010, foreigners have bought about $800 million INFII worth of Indian shares and the rupee is up about 2.6 percent.
One-month offshore non-deliverable forwards contracts INR1MNDFOR= were quoted at 45.27/37, little changed from the onshore spot rate.
In the currency futures market INRFUTURES, the most traded near-month contracts on the National Stock Exchange and MCX-SX were both quoting at 45.4025 and 45.3975 respectively.
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