The rupee plunged sharply to a record intra-day low on Tuesday, breaching the 64-level mark against the dollar for the first time, while equity markets remained under pressure after foreign brokerage firm JP Morgan downgraded Indian stocks to neutral from overweight, and Citi lowered its target for the Sensex to 18,900 from 20,800, citing the rupee’s weakness.
Continuing with its southward march, the rupee hit a lifetime low of 64.13 to the US dollar in intra-day trade, before recovering to close the day at 63.25 per dollar. Dealers said the rupee’s partial recovery was helped by some nationalised banks selling dollars.