Economic news

Rupee Drops to 2-Month Low as Global Bond Rout Deepens

MUMBAI, Oct 1 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee dropped to its weakest level in two months as global bond yields surged to ​decadal highs and oil prices jumped, deepening pressure on the South ‌Asian currency that was already hurt by foreign portfolio outflows on Thursday.

The rupee ended down 0.5% at 96.3150 per dollar, its sharpest single-day fall in more than two months after it ​breached the key psychological barrier of 96 even as dollar sales ​by state-run banks limited its fall.

Borrowing costs from the US to ⁠France, Britain and Japan hit their highest in decades on Thursday, squeezing already ​pressured government finances, and threatening stocks, credit and other global assets.

The 10-year US ​Treasury yield , a yardstick for borrowing costs and asset prices globally, rose to 5.34%, its highest since 2002.

Brent crude oil prices reclaimed the $100-per-barrel mark as well after China suspended oil products ​exports, potentially tightening fuel markets already coping with supply shortages globally.

The multi-front ​pressures drove down stocks in Mumbai by about 1% while the yield on the 10-year ‌benchmark ⁠bond rose to its highest level in over two years.

Supply disruptions, volatile energy prices and global uncertainty could pose near-term risks to inflation, the rupee and capital flows, the Indian government said in a report on Thursday.

Prevailing ​pressures on the rupee ​have also kept ⁠exporters reticent about hedging their receivables even as importer hedging remains robust, exacerbating the demand-supply mismatch in the foreign exchange market.

FX ​advisory firm IFA Global recommends that exporters should hedge ​cautiously and ⁠only to the extent of in-hand orders while importers are advised to hedge on any dips on the dollar-rupee pair.

Elsewhere, Asian currencies were down between 0.1% and 0.4% while the ⁠dollar index ​rose 0.5% to nearly 102. Investors now await ​a key US labour market report due on Friday, while Indian financial markets will be shut for a local ​holiday.

Reporting by Jaspreet Kalra; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala, Nivedita Bhattacharjee and Janane Venkatraman

Source: Reuters


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