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Rupee Hits Historic Low, Breaches 93 vs Dollar Amid Middle East Crisis

The Indian rupee plunged to a historic low, breaching the 93 mark against the US dollar amid sustained selling pressure. Currency experts attribute the fall to elevated crude oil prices, geopolitical uncertainty from the Middle East conflict, and persistent foreign portfolio investor outflows exceeding $8.5 billion since March 1. While Reserve Bank of India intervention is slowing the pace of depreciation, analysts see no trend reversal without de-escalation in the Middle East. The rupee's structure remains bearish with resistance seen at 93.20-93.40 and support at lower levels.

Key Points: Rupee at Record Low vs Dollar, Breaches 93 Amid Conflict

  • Rupee breaches 93/USD historic low
  • High crude oil prices pressure currency
  • Massive FPI outflows of over $8.5bn
  • Geopolitical risk from Middle East conflict
  • RBI intervention slowing but not reversing fall
2 min read

Rupee weakens to historic low, breaches 93 mark against dollar amid West Asia conflict

Indian rupee hits historic low, breaches 93 per dollar amid Middle East conflict, high oil prices, and massive foreign investor outflows.

"Rupee now trading at 93.15/16, having broken 93 figure some time back. - K N Dey"

By Nikhil Dedha, Mumbai, March 20

The Indian rupee weakened further and breached the 93 mark against the US dollar in early trade on Friday, hitting a fresh historic low amid ongoing conflict in West Asia and continued foreign outflows.

The rupee opened at a record low of 92.89 per dollar on Friday and soon depreciated further to cross the 93 level, indicating sustained pressure on the domestic currency.

Currency experts attributed the fall to elevated crude oil prices, geopolitical uncertainty and persistent selling by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs).

K N Dey, a currency expert, told ANI, "Rupee now trading at 93.15/16, having broken 93 figure some time back. Rupee opened today at all-time low 92.89/90. Yesterday the NDF high was approx. 93.40 and it traded in the range of 93.25 to 93.35 most of the day."

He added that there are no signs of de-escalation in the Middle East, which is keeping markets highly volatile. "No sign of de-escalation in the Middle East zone with Brent touching 116 yesterday and now around 106. Highly speculative/volatile zone," he said.

Dey also highlighted that sustained foreign outflows are adding pressure on the rupee. "There is also no end of FII's sell off in the equity market with a net sell of approx. Rs 80,000 crores which is more than 8.5 billion dollars from March 1st till yesterday. This adds more pressure to the falling rupee," he noted.

According to him, the Middle East crisis along with large FPI outflows is likely to continue weighing on the rupee, with the peak yet to be seen. He added that intervention by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is helping slow the pace of depreciation but is not reversing the trend.

"Only if there is some de-escalation in the Middle East crisis then we could see some pause on the falling rupee," he said.

Ponmudi R, CEO of Enrich Money, also noted continued pressure on the currency.

"There is continued pressure on the Indian rupee amid elevated crude prices and global risk aversion. The structure remains bullish, supported by higher highs and higher lows. A sustained move above 93.00 will strengthen the upside bias, with resistance at 93.20-93.40," he said.

He added that on the downside, support levels are placed at 92.70, followed by 92.50-92.40.

The continued weakening of the rupee reflects the impact of global uncertainties, rising oil prices and capital outflows.

- ANI

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Reader Comments

P
Priya S
It's a global issue, but we are always so vulnerable because of our oil imports. Maybe this is the push we need to seriously invest in renewable energy and reduce that dependency. Jai Hind, but our policies need to be stronger.
R
Rohit P
FPIs pulling out 80,000 crores since March 1st is shocking! 😳 Where is the confidence in the Indian market? This constant outflow hurts the rupee and the stock market both. Very disappointing.
S
Sarah B
Living in India for 5 years now. The rupee's weakness directly impacts expat salaries and remittances back home. It's a tough situation for everyone when global conflicts spill over like this. Hoping for stability soon.
K
Karthik V
The experts say the peak is yet to be seen. That's the most concerning part. RBI is doing what it can, but it's like trying to stop a flood with a bucket. We need the West Asia situation to calm down, or this will keep hurting us.
N
Nikhil C
With due respect, while global factors are major, our domestic policy paralysis on economic reforms is also to blame. We can't control Brent crude, but we can control making India a more attractive, stable destination for investment. That part seems lacking.
M
Meera T

We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.

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