The rupee extended its losing streak for the fourth straight session on Wednesday (April 9), falling 30 paise to 86.56 against the US dollar in early trade.

A weaker Chinese yuan and sustained foreign investor outflows dragged the currency down, despite a fall in crude oil prices and a softer dollar.

The local unit opened at 86.52 at the interbank foreign exchange market. It briefly touched 86.60 before recovering slightly to 86.56. On Tuesday (April 8), the rupee had already plunged 50 paise to close at 86.26 — its biggest single-day fall since mid-January.

The pressure on the rupee intensified after the offshore Chinese yuan slipped to a record low on Tuesday (April 8).

Asian currencies also weakened, with most falling between 0.1% and 0.8%.

A foreign bank trader said Indian companies have been ramping up their hedging activity, while foreign institutional investors continued to dump equities.

FIIs sold ₹4,994 crore worth of shares on Tuesday (April 8) alone. April outflows now stand at over $2.5 billion.

“Amid yuan pressure, the RBI may tolerate a weaker rupee if China pushes its currency lower to absorb tariff shocks,” a source told Reuters.

US President Donald Trump’s new 104% tariff on Chinese goods has rattled global markets and added fuel to the trade war narrative.

This has hit sentiment across emerging markets.

The dollar index was trading 0.59% lower at 102.09, while Brent crude slid 3.6% to $60.50 per barrel.

–With inputs from Reuters and PTI