The rupee touched a record low of 75-mark against the dollar on Thursday, as market remained concerned over the sharp rise in coronavirus cases in the country and weak domestic equities.
As of March 19, coronavirus pandemic cases in India have reached 169 mark, the Health Ministry said in a statement.
The rupee started its session on a weak note at 74.96 at the interbank forex market, lost further ground and touched a low of 75.12 against the US dollar, registering a decline of over 86 paise over its last close.
On Wednesday, the local unit had settled at 74.26 against the US dollar.
Around 12.45 pm, it was trading at Rs 75.14, or 1.24 per cent weaker than its previous close.
Traders said there is a sense of anxiety among investors as they see the global and domestic economy plunging into a deep crisis due to coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that has killed nearly 9,000 and sickened over two lakh people around the globe. Moreover, the steep decline in domestic equities and sustained foreign fund outflows further dampened the sentiment, they said.
Foreign investors remained bearish in Indian capital markets as they pulled out more than Rs 5,085.35 crore on Wednesday, market data showed.
Benchmark indices S&P BSE Sensex was trading 996.20 points down at 27,873.31 and Nifty fell 305.45 points to 8,163.35.
Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 5.71 per cent to USD 26.30 per barrel.
The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, fell by 0.30 per cent to 100.85.
(With input from agencies)