Rupee slips 40 paise to settle at 76.46 on weak domestic equities, strengthening greenback overseas

Mumbai: The rupee depreciated by 40 paise to settle at 76.46 (provisional) against the US dollar on Friday, tracking weak domestic equities and a strengthening greenback overseas. Forex traders said market sentiment weakened after a potential antiviral drug for coronavirus reportedly failed its first trial. The rupee opened lower at 76.30 at the interbank forex market and then fell further to 76.47 and finally closed at 76.46, down 40 paise over its last close. [caption id="attachment_5114261" align="alignleft" width="380"]

Representational image. Reuters.[/caption]The rupee had settled at 76.06 against the US dollar on Thursday. The dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, advanced by 0.31 percent to 100.74. Market participants are concerned that the sharp rise in coronavirus cases could weigh on the global as well as domestic economy. The number of coronavirus cases around the world has crossed 27 lakh. In India, over 23,000 cases have been reported so far. "Any piece of bad news regarding coronavirus, rattles the risky assets including rupee and we see it breaching fresh record lows," Emkay Global Financial Services Head of Research - Currency Rahul Gupta said. Gupta further noted that "all this while, investors were hoping on flattening coronavirus cases and progress of a vaccine, but now there are doubts in the development of drugs. This uncertainty will continue to fickle the forex market". After hitting a low of 31,278.27, the benchmark Sensex was trading 489.42 points or 1.54 percent down at 31,373.66 in the afternoon session. Similarly, the NSE Nifty declined 145.45 points, or 1.56 percent, to 9,168.45. In USD/INR spot 75.70-75.75 has been acting as a crucial support, and will remain the same, going ahead we may see prices breach 77-77.15 level, he further noted.