The Indian rupee on Thursday plunged sharply to hit a new all-time low of 77.59 in early trade against the U.S. dollar amid a broader decline in Asian currencies and a lacklustre trend in the domestic equity markets.
Foreign fund outflows and elevated crude oil prices also impacted the domestic unit, forex traders said.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened sharply lower at 77.52 against the American dollar, then lost further ground to quote 77.59.
In the previous session, the rupee had settled at 77.25 against the dollar.
The dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.10 per cent higher at 103.95.
On the domestic equity market front, BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty cracked nearly 2 per cent in early trade as the U.S. April inflation data, which stood at persistently high in April, dented investor confidence.
Back home, investors also awaited April's retail inflation data, scheduled to be released at 5:30 pm today.
Meanwhile, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is likely to raise inflation projections in the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting next month and would also consider a rate hike to tame inflation which is above its comfort level, sources said.
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