The rupee plunged by as much as 44 paise to settle at a 20-month low on Wednesday, December 15, as consistent foreign fund outflows and risk-averse sentiments weighed on the local unit. At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit breached the 76 level in the opening session to trade lower at 76.05 against the dollar on foreign fund outflows.
The domestic unit plunged further to settle at 76.32, a level not seen since April 24, 2020, registering a loss of 44 paise over the previous close. Also, the rupee recorded its sharpest single-day decline in almost eight months.
The rupee has been under pressure for the past five weeks due to consistent forex outflows on expectations of a faster rate of tapering by the US Federal Reserve to tackle the rising inflation.
The local unit has declined in nine out of 11 trading sessions this month, tanking a total 119 paise or 1.58 per cent against the dollar. The decline in the rupee has also been driven by the fear of the rapid spread of the Omicron variant, according to traders. The US dollar index, which measures the greenback's strength against the basket of six currencies, fell 0.12 per cent to 96.45.
On the domestic equity market front, the BSE Sensex ended 329.06 points or 0.57 per cent lower at 57,788.03, while the broader NSE Nifty declined 103.50 points or 0.6 per cent to 17,221.40.
According to provisional data, the foreign institutional investors remained net sellers in the capital markets, pulling out Rs 763.18 crore on December 14. Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, fell 1.06 per cent to $72.92 per barrel.
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