In early trade on Monday, the rupee fell 36 paise to an all-time low of 78.29 versus the US dollar, reflecting the strength of the US currency outside as investors rushed to the safe-haven currency amid an overall risk-averse mood.
Investor morale was pulled down by weak Asian currencies, a lacklustre trend in local stocks, and continued foreign capital outflows, according to forex dealers.
The rupee began at 78.20 versus the US dollar on the interbank foreign exchange, before losing momentum to quote at 78.29, a new low, down 36 paise from the previous closing.
The rupee fell 19 paise to a new lifetime low of 77.93 versus the US dollar on Friday.
“Weak global sentiments, as well as weak Asian and European currencies, have caused the rupee to start below 78, despite the RBI’s efforts to keep it below 77.70.
We’ll have to keep an eye on the RBI in the coming days to see how it acts “Finrex Treasury Advisors’ Head of Treasury, Anil Kumar Bhansali, stated.
Brent crude futures declined 1.46 percent to USD 120.23 a barrel, the global benchmark. In the meantime, the dollar index, which measures the strength of the greenback against a basket of six currencies, was up 0.30 percent at 104.45.
