The Indian rupee extended its decline in early trade on Monday, falling 41 paise to hit a record low of 93.94 against the US dollar, weighed down by elevated global crude oil prices due to the ongoing conflict in West Asia and a firm greenback. 

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local currency opened at 93.84 against the US dollar and weakened further to its all-time low level, compared with the previous close of 93.53. On Friday, the rupee had breached the 93-mark for the first time, settling 64 paise lower. 

Forex traders said sustained foreign fund outflows and a sharp decline in domestic equity markets added pressure on the rupee. 

Brent crude slipped 0.60% 

The dollar index, which measures the US dollar against a basket of six currencies, was marginally higher by 0.02% at 99.66. Meanwhile, Brent crude futures, the global oil benchmark, slipped 0.60% to $112.90 per barrel, though prices remained elevated. 

Domestic equity benchmarks opened sharply lower, reflecting weak investor sentiment. The Nifty 50 index fell 500.40 points, or 2.12%, to 22,623.85, while the Sensex dropped 1,618.42 points, or 2.17%, to 72,930.21. 

Market breadth remained negative, with 48 out of 50 stocks on the Nifty 50 declining in early trade. Metal stocks led the losses, with Tata Steel, Hindalco Industries and JSW Steel among the top laggards. In contrast, shares of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation and HCLTech traded higher. 

The sell-off wiped out nearly ₹8.25 lakh crore of investor wealth as the total market capitalisation of the BSE-listed companies declined to ₹421 lakh crore.

Nifty India Volatility Index surged 

The NSE Nifty India Volatility Index surged 15.39% to 26.32, signalling a spike in market uncertainty. 

Broader markets underperformed the benchmarks, with the Nifty MidCap and Nifty SmallCap indices falling 3.49% and 3.87%, respectively. 

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) remained net sellers, offloading equities worth ₹5,518.39 crore on Friday, according to exchange data. 

Separately, India’s foreign exchange reserves declined by $7.052 billion to $709.759 billion in the week ended March 13, according to data released by the Reserve Bank of India.