Therupi has fallen over 10% this year.
New Delhi:
The rupee on Thursday fell 16 paise to close at an all-time low of 82.33 against the US currency on a spurt in US bond yields, risk-averse sentiment among investors and firm crude oil prices.
The domestic currency was trading at $82.30 per dollar at 9:30 am, down 0.5% from its previous close of 81.89. The currency opened at 82.19 and touched an all-time low of 82.33 at the start of the day, and has not recovered.
On Thursday, the Indian currency closed below the level of 82 against the greenback for the first time. It closed at a record low of 82.17, down 55 paise against the US currency.
“The rise in crude oil prices has raised concerns about a resurgence of the trade deficit. Prolonged US rates are not helping the capital account,” IFA Global Research Academy said in a note.
Further, it seems that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has become conservative in reserve spending, saying these factors are causing the rupee to adjust.
The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.14 per cent lower at 112.10.
A Reuters survey said that the rupee will trade at its record low even after this year hit by rising oil prices and an aggressive US Federal Reserve rate-hiking campaign.
The rupee has fallen over 10% this year and hit an all-time low of 82.33 per dollar on Friday, news agency PTI reported, though the Reserve Bank of India continues to sell its forex reserves to protect the local currency. .
While it got some respite after the RBI hiked interest rates for the fourth time in a row last week, the rising trade deficit due to rising oil prices and slowdown in exports pulled the rupee down.
On Wednesday, a cartel of oil producers led by Saudi Arabia agreed to cut production drastically, pushing Brent crude futures to a three-week high of $93.99 a barrel.
This rise in crude oil prices will add to the country’s problem of inflation and rising current account deficit (CAD) as India imports more than 80 per cent of its oil needs.
The greenback, which has been rising this year in an uptrend, fell on Thursday, taking some risk and helping the commodity complex, where oil was trading near its highest level in three weeks.