Mumbai: The rupee furthered its losses by another 5 paise to close at 73.84 against the US dollar on Tuesday in line with weaker Asian peers amid concerns over a new coronavirus strain.
At the interbank forex market, the domestic unit opened at 73.95 against the US dollar and witnessed an intra-day high of 73.82 and a low of 73.95.
The local unit finally closed at 73.84 against the American currency, registering a fall of 5 paise over its previous close.
On Monday, the rupee plunged 23 paise to end at a two-week low of 73.79 against the US dollar.
“The Indian rupee ended marginally weak against the US dollar, tracking weakness in most regional currencies on concerns that a infectious new coronavirus strain could slow down the prospects of a global economic recovery,” said Sriram Iyer, Senior Research Analyst at Reliance Securities.
Most of the Asian currencies were weaker against the dollar this Tuesday and weighed on sentiments, he said.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.29 per cent higher at 90.30.
“The Dollar Index was up , adding to Monday’s rise amid safe haven appeal for the greenback, while, most non-dollar currencies are trading weak against the greenback this Tuesday amid risk aversion,” Iyer said.
On the domestic equity market front, the BSE Sensex ended 452.73 points or 0.99 per cent higher at 46,006.69, while the broader NSE Nifty advanced 137.90 points or 1.03 per cent to 13,466.30.
“Market sentiments were hurt amid concerns over new virus strain in UK. Traders fear that emergence of new strain of coronavirus in Britain has led to fresh travel restrictions, which may impact global economic recovery. Rupee may trade in the range of 73.40 to 74.25 in next couple of sessions,” said Saif Mukadam, Research Analyst, Sharekhan by BNP Paribas.
Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, fell 1.37 per cent to USD 50.21 per barrel.