Rupee falls 12 paise to revisit all-time low of ₹88.80 against US dollar

The rupee depreciated 12 paise to revisit its all-time low of ₹88.80 (provisional) against the US dollar on Tuesday, weighed down by negative domestic equities and overnight gains in the American currency.

Forex traders said foreign fund outflows amid a risk-off mode globally further dented investor sentiment.

However, a decline in crude oil prices and reports of RBI intervention supported the local unit and restricted the slide.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at ₹88.73 against the greenback and fell to an intraday low of ₹88.81 and a high of ₹88.73. It finally closed the day at ₹88.80 against the greenback, registering a decline of 12 paise over its previous close of ₹88.68.

On September 30, the rupee had fallen to an all-time low of ₹88.80 against the US dollar.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.10% higher at 99.36. Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading lower by 2.15% at USD 61.99 per barrel in futures trade.

According to some experts, US-India trade tariffs are the only point which is hurting investors' sentiments.

A team of senior officials from India will visit the US this week for trade talks, and negotiations on the proposed bilateral trade agreement are progressing well, a top official said on Monday.

In February this year, leaders of the two countries directed officials to negotiate a proposed Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA). It was planned to conclude the first tranche of the pact by the fall (October-November) of 2025.

So far, five rounds of negotiations have been completed. On the domestic macroeconomic data front, India’s CPI inflation cooled off to an 8-year low at 1.54% in September against 2.07% in August. It fell below the RBI inflation target of 2%.

WPI inflation cooled off to 0.13% in September compared to 0.52% in August.

On the domestic equity market front, Sensex dropped 297.07 points to close at 82,029.98, while the Nifty declined 81.85 points to 25,145.50.

Foreign Institutional Investors sold equities worth ₹240.10 crore on Monday, according to exchange data.