27 March,2026 02:13 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Rupee breaches 94.50 mark as oil prices and global tensions rise. Representational Image
The Indian rupee dropped sharply on Friday, hitting an all-time low of 94.70 against the US dollar during intra-day trade. The currency fell by 74 paise, mainly due to rising oil prices, a stronger US dollar and ongoing tensions in West Asia, reported the PTI.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 94.18 and continued to weaken throughout the day, crossing the 94.50 mark before touching 94.70. This came after the rupee had already closed at a record low of 93.96 on Wednesday. Markets were closed on Thursday due to Ram Navami.
Forex experts said consistent dollar demand from oil companies and foreign investors added pressure. As analyst Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director, Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP explained, "With consistent buying from oil companies, the rupee breached 94.50 with exporters holding their inflows, while importers buy dollars for their payables," according to the PTI.
The fall in the rupee was accompanied by weakness in domestic equity markets. The Sensex dropped over 1,100 points, while the Nifty fell more than 350 points during the session.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) also continued selling, offloading equities worth Rs 1,805.37 crore on Wednesday. This outflow further weakened market sentiment.
Globally too, markets were under stress. US indices ended lower, with the S&P 500 falling 1.74 per cent and the Nasdaq dropping 2.38 per cent. Asian markets followed the trend, with Japan's Nikkei and South Korea's Kospi both declining as per IANS.
Crude oil prices showed sharp swings during the week. Brent crude initially surged but later fell, trading around USD 105.53 per barrel, down over 2 per cent on Friday morning. US WTI crude also dropped more than 2.5 per cent to USD 92.08 as per the IANS news agency.
Overall, both benchmarks have declined nearly 5 per cent this week, though they remain sensitive to developments in West Asia.
The volatility is linked to uncertainty around the conflict, especially after US President Donald Trump said a pause on attacks on Iran's energy infrastructure would continue. However, Iran has not confirmed any ongoing talks, keeping tensions high.
Amid the uncertainty, investors turned to safer assets like gold and silver. During the session, gold touched an intra-day low of Rs 1,40,287, still reflecting gains of 0.56 per cent or Rs 794, whereas silver hit a low of Rs 2,23,515 earlier in the session and was trading at Rs 2,27,799, up Rs 7,925 or around 3 per cent at the last count. This rise reflects cautious investor sentiment, as markets remain unsure about global developments.
(With PTI and IANS Inputs)
