The rupee was down by 41 paise to a two-week low of Rs 49.88 per US dollar in early trade today on sustained demand for the American currency from importers and banks.The rupee had resumed higher at Rs 49.40 per dollar, but later fell sharply 49.76 on the Interbank Foreign Exchange from its previous close of 49.47 per dollar and dropped further to Rs 49.88 per dollar.