The Indian rupee (INR) depreciated 10 paise to hit a new all-time low of 85.25 against the US dollar (USD) in early trade on Thursday, December 26, dragged down by the unabated outflow of foreign capital amid increased month-end demand of the American currency.
Positive sentiment in domestic equity markets failed to support the Indian currency as the greenback index remained elevated while crude oil prices were on upward move, forex traders said.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened weak at 85.23 and slipped further to hit a life-time low of 85.25 against the greenback in initial deals, registering a loss of 10 paise against its previous closing level.
On Tuesday, December 24, the rupee fell four paise to settle at a record low of 85.15 against the US dollar. The forex markets were closed on Wednesday for Christmas.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading marginally lower by 0.11 percent but remained elevated at 107.90, amid soaring US Treasury yields and the fear of delayed interest rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve.
Brent Crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.38 percent to USD 73.86 per barrel in futures trade.
On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share benchmark index Sensex was trading higher by 335.63 points, or 0.43 percent at 78,808.50 points. The Nifty was up 103.55 points, or 0.44 percent, at 23,831.20 points.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital markets on Tuesday, as they offloaded shares worth INR 2,454.21 crore (USD 287,881,532), according to exchange data.
