Rupee slumps 22 paise to close at 75.58 against US dollar

The rupee plunged by 22 paise to close at 75.58 (provisional) against the US currency on Monday, as geopolitical tensions pushed investors towards safe-haven assets.

Forex traders said a lacklustre trend in domestic equities and elevated crude oil prices weighed on the local unit.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 75.53 against the American dollar, and later witnessed an intra-day high of 75.37 and a low of 75.64 against the greenback.

The local unit finally ended the day at 75.58, down 22 paise from the previous close, registering the fifth consecutive session of loss, during which it has lost 68 paise.

On Friday, the rupee had plunged by 21 paise to a nearly seven-week low of 75.36 against the US currency on forex outflows and a strong dollar after a spike in inflation in the US boosted expectations of an aggressive rate hike by the Federal Reserve.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.13 per cent higher at 96.21.

"The rupee depreciated for the fifth day in a row following a plunge in domestic equities and stronger dollar index," Dilip Parmar, Research Analyst, HDFC Securities said.

The local currency was the worst performing currency among Asian currencies, ahead of retail inflation data which is likely to be around 6 per cent, the upper range of the central bank's mandate, Parmar said, adding that stocks fell as geopolitical risks over Ukraine rippled through global markets.

"Near-term outlook for USD-INR remains following strength in dollar and weaker macro environment. The pair is having resistance around 75.70 and support at 75.25," Parmar said.

On the domestic equity market front, the 30-share Sensex ended 1,747.08 points or 3 per cent lower at 56,405.84, while the broader NSE Nifty settled down 531.95 points or 3.06 per cent at 16,842.80.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude futures fell 0.35 per cent to USD 94.11 per barrel.

Foreign institutional investors remained net buyers in the capital market on Friday as they purchased shares worth Rs 108.53 crore, as per stock exchange data.