Rupee at record low as US dollar surges globally, domestic markets fall

Fears of a global recession weigh on the unit despite RBI measures to boost dollar inflow

The rupee weakened to a fresh low against the US dollar on Tuesday as the greenback surged to a 20-year high globally and domestic equities suffered losses, dealers said.

The rupee was Tuesday morning trading at 79.61 against the US dollar versus its close of 79.44 on Monday.

The US dollar index, which measures the unit against six major currencies, was at 108.42 this morning, as against 107.67 on Monday. The index was at levels last seen around August 2002, Bloomberg data showed.

At 10:40 am IST, the BSE Sensex and the NSE Nifty were trading 0.3 per cent and