Rupee slips to historic low at 80.05 a dollar
The HinduThe Indian rupee weakened to a historic closing low of 80.05 per U.S. dollar on Wednesday as foreign portfolio investors continued to sell their Indian holdings and head back to the safety of the dollar and domestic oil importers too bought the U.S. currency for funding purchases. Sugandha Sachdeva, VP, Commodities & Currency Research, Religare Broking, attributed the rupee’s fall “to concerns about the interest rate normalisation path of the U.S. Fed and the deteriorating growth environment, which have led to a global flight to the dollar.” “Going forward, even as the rupee is inclined on a downwards trajectory, we reckon that the domestic currency is likely to find a strong cushion at the 81 mark,” she said. “Amid a backdrop of uncertainty and Europe in the grip of an acute energy crisis, markets would be closely eyeing the crucial European Central Bank monetary policy decision, where it is likely that the ECB would deliver a 50 basis points rate hike to tame worsening inflation,” Ms. Sachdeva observed. On the contrary, a slightly dovish tone would mean renewed strength in the dollar index that shall further suppress the Indian rupee,” she added.