Sri Lankan rupee 1-wk forwards rise on bank dollar sales; stocks up

June 30 (Reuters) - Sri Lankan rupee one-week forwards rose on Thursday as a state-run bank sold dollars after the central bank intervened to lift the rupee, while dollar selling by a few exporters also helped the currency gain, dealers said. One-week dollar/rupee forwards, which have been acting as a proxy for the spot rupee, were at 146.40/50 per dollar at 0527 GMT, firmer than Wednesday's close of 146.60/80. "A state bank is selling dollars. It looks like the central banks is trying to keep the rupee steady because it is the end of the quarter," said a currency dealer, requesting not to be named. Dealers said the move could help the government show that the currency had really not depreciated in the given quarter. Officials from the central bank were not available for comments. Dealers said the three-day dollar/rupee forwards, known as spot next, did not trade. It ended at 146.50/70 per dollar on Wednesday, compared with Tuesday's close of 147.65/85. Spot next, which has acted as a proxy for the spot currency since January, indicates the exchange rate for the day following conventional spot settlement. For Thursday's trade, the spot next settlement takes place five days ahead due to the intervening weekend.