Rupee falls 8 paise to hit all-time low of 84.50 against US dollar
Mumbai, Nov 21: The rupee depreciated 8 paise to settle at an all-time low of 84.50 against the US dollar on Thursday, dragged down by massive sell-off in domestic equity markets and surging crude oil prices amid a volatile geopolitical situation.
According to forex traders, the American currency strengthened due to safe-haven appeal amid escalating tension between Russia and Ukraine, while the continuous outflow of foreign funds also put pressure on the domestic unit.
At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 84.41 and touched the lowest-ever level of 84.51 against the greenback during intra-day. The unit ended the session at 84.50 against the dollar, surpassing its previous all-time low closing level of 84.46 recorded on November 14.
On Tuesday, the rupee had settled flat at 84.42 against the US dollar.
The foreign exchange market was closed on Wednesday on account of assembly elections in Maharashtra.
"We expect the rupee to trade around 84.5 against the dollar by end December. A strong dollar continues to create a depreciating bias for currencies globally and is likely to sustain FPI outflows from Indian markets in the near-term.
"However, interventions by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), supported by India's healthy foreign exchange reserves, should help keep rupee volatility in check," said Rajani Sinha, Chief Economist, CareEdge Ratings.
FPIs have withdrawn approximately USD 4 billion from Indian markets in November, following a record USD 11 billion in outflows in October. While high US Treasury yields and a strong dollar have contributed to these outflows, other domestic factors have also been at play, such as muted corporate earnings and high valuations.
"Over the medium-term, we expect the rupee to trade around 84 by the end of FY25, supported by India's strong fundamentals, including a manageable current account deficit, inclusion in global bond indices, fiscal consolidation and stronger growth relative to other emerging markets. These factors should help maintain India's attractiveness as an investment destination," Sinha added.
Sinha further said "going forward, it will be crucial to monitor the implementation of Trump's policies and China's response, as these will play a key role in shaping market dynamics."
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading lower by 0.02 per cent at 106.66.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, surged by 1.84 per cent to USD 74.15 per barrel in futures trade.
Jateen Trivedi, VP Research Analyst - Commodity and Currency, LKP Securities, said the rupee weakened as pressure mounted due to the dollar scaling higher above 106.65 amidst renewed global uncertainties with geopolitical tensions between Russia and Ukraine adding to global risk aversion.
At the same time, sell-off in domestic equity markets was fuelled after the Adani Group faced bribery and fraud charges in the US. "This has further fuelled FII outflows, continuing the trend of capital flight from Indian markets," Trivedi said.
In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex tumbled 422.59 points, or 0.54 per cent, to close at 77,155.79 points, while Nifty tanked 168.60 points, or 0.72 per cent, to settle at 23,349.90 points.
Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) were net sellers in the capital markets on Thursday, as they offloaded shares worth Rs 5,320.68 crore, according to exchange data.
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Vinod Tawde seeks apology from Kharge, Rahul through legal notice, warns of defamation lawsuit
Cash-for-vote row
New Delhi, Nov 22: BJP leader Vinod Tawde has demanded an apology from Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi for making "false and baseless" allegations against him in the cash-for-votes incident in Maharashtra, saying if they don't he would sue them for defamation.
Tawde was accused by Bahujan Vikas Aghadi, a regional party, of distributing Rs 5 crore to woo voters, with its members barging into a hotel room on November 19 in a Mumbai suburb, where the BJP leader was present.
The former Maharashtra minister and BJP national general secretary claimed innocence, saying the alleged amount was not recovered in the probe by the Election Commission and police.
"The Congress only believes in spreading lies, and this incident is a proof of the party's low level politics to dent me and my party's image," Tawde said.
The two Congress leaders and the party spokesperson Supriya Shrinate seized on the row to accuse the BJP of using money power to influence the November 20 assembly polls in the state.
The legal notice sent to the three claimed that they were aware that they were pushing a "totally false story fabricated" by them.
"You all have deliberately, mischievously with the sole intention of damaging the reputation of our client intentionally fabricated the story distribution of money. You all have published false, baseless allegations against our client on various media for tarnishing his image in the eyes of right thinking people in the society," the notice read.
The Congress leaders were in a "great hurry" to damage Tawde's reputation, they did not bother to check the fact and or despite knowing the entire fact they made the false, baseless allegations, it said.
"The entire imputation made by you all are totally false, baseless, malicious and mala fide and as our client is in no way involved in any such illegal activity and as a responsible office bearer of the national political party he is aware of his duties," it added.
The notice demanded an "unconditional apology" to Tawde within 24 hours from the time the receipt of the notice, which was sent on November 21, and published in newspapers and X.
If they do not offer apology, then Tawde will initiate criminal proceedings under Section 356, which covers defamation, of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and also civil proceedings for the damages of Rs 100 crore against the three Congress leaders, the notice said.
