Rupee's new low: Rs 75/$ for the first time (Lead)

Mumbai, March 19 (IANS) The Indian rupee touched a record low against the dollar on Thursday, trading at over Rs 75 per dollar against its previous close of Rs 74.26 a dollar.Around 12.45 pm, it was trading at Rs 75.14, or 1.24 per cent weaker than its previous close.The recent depreciation in the Indian currency has been on the back of persistent pressure of coronavirus fears on global markets along with a free fall in oil prices. The dollar also strengthened against other Asian currencies.Stock markets also plunged on Thursday as Sensex fell below the 27,000-mark and Nifty50 breached the 8,000 mark for the first time in over three years during the initial trade.In a bid to increase liquidity and enhance confidence in the market amid the coronavirus crisis, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Wednesday announced it would purchase government securities worth Rs 10,000 crore through open market operations.
--IANS rrb/tsb