Rupee dives below 73 vs dollor

Mumbai: Falling for the third consecutive session, the rupee on Tuesday slumped 43 paise to close at a 16-month low of 73.19 against the US dollar as investor sentiment remained fragile amid concerns over the impact of coronavirus and rising crude oil prices.

Forex traders said the rupee which started the day on a positive note witnessed heavy volatility during the session as uncertainty over the economic impact of coronavirus spooked investors. At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local currency opened at 72.50.

During the day it saw a high of 72.43 and a low of 73.34 against the American currency. The domestic unit finally settled at 73.19 against the greenback, down 43 paise over its previous closing price of 72.76.

This is the lowest closing level since November 1, 2018. In the three consecutive sessions of fall till Tuesday, the domestic unit has depreciated by 160 paise. The Financial Benchmark India Private Ltd (FBIL) set the reference rate for the rupee/dollar at 72.2420 and for rupee/euro at 79.7605. The reference rate for rupee/British pound was fixed at 92.7404 and for rupee/100 Japanese yen at 66.73.