Rupee Hits All-Time Low: Amid escalating war in the Middle East as the US, Israel, and Iran have been retaliating on each other, the Indian Rupee plummeted 69 paise to hit an all-time low of 92.18 against the US dollar in early trade on March 4.
Rising crude oil prices amid rising geopolitical tensions between the US, Iran, and Israel have weighed on market sentiment. Foreign exchange traders also believe the rupee is under significant pressure due to the sharp rise in crude oil prices, with Brent crude crossing the US$82 per barrel mark in futures trading.
In the interbank forex market, the rupee opened at 92.05, then fell to an early low of 92.18 against the US currency, a decline of 69 paise from its previous close.
On Monday, the rupee was at 91.49 against the US dollar. Forex markets were closed on Tuesday due to Holi.
Amid the developments, the concerns around continued foreign capital outflows from equities and expensive imports are increasing. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which measures the dollar's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.03 per cent higher at 99.08.
At the same time, global oil benchmark Brent crude rose 1.01 per cent to $82.22 per barrel.
As per experts, rising crude oil prices in the international market comes as risk as it would cause a sharp increase in India's import bill. India imports 85 per cent of its fuel needs, and a significant portion of that comes from the Gulf countries.
Stock Market Crash
The decline is not only limited to the forex market; in the domestic equity market, the Sensex also fell 1,671.39 points, or 2.08 per cent, to 78,567.46, while the Nifty fell 502.35 points, or 2.02 per cent, to 24,363.35 in early trade.
According to exchange data, foreign institutional investors sold equities worth Rs 3,295.64 crore on Monday.
(With PTI's Input)