Rupee slumps 23 paise vs US dollar on persistent trade war worries

Mumbai, May 9 (PTI): Falling for the fourth straight session, the rupee depreciated by 23 paise to 69.94 against the US dollar on Thursday on unabated foreign fund outflows amid simmering US-China trade tensions.
Firming oil prices and a prolonged spell of weakness in the equity markets also weighed on the domestic unit, dealers said.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened marginally lower at 69.70 and slipped further to breach the 70-mark, touching a low of 70.03, before finally settling at 69.94, down by 23 paise over its previous close.
The rupee has now lost a hefty 72 paise in four sessions.

Globally, the Japanese yen rallied to three-month highs against the dollar as investors retreated to safe haven assets following the fresh flare-up in tensions between the US and China.

The dollar has hit four-month highs against the yuan and the Australian dollar on trade tensions, he added.
Foreign investors remained net sellers in the capital markets, offloading shares worth INR 655.36 crore Thursday, provisional exchange data showed.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, inched up 0.02 per cent to 97.64.

Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.17 per cent to USD 70.49 per barrel. Meanwhile, the domestic equity markets nursed losses for the seventh straight session.