The local unit opened at 89.95 at the interbank foreign exchange and slid through the day, touching a record intra-day low of 90.48. This decline came a day after the rupee had already weakened by 7 paise to finish at 89.94.

The rupee slipped sharply on Thursday, closing at a new all-time low of 90.33 against the US dollar, weighed down by uncertainty over the India-US trade deal and persistent foreign fund outflows. The domestic currency fell 39 paise from its previous close, marking its steepest single-day drop in recent sessions.

The local unit opened at 89.95 at the interbank foreign exchange and slid through the day, touching a record intra-day low of 90.48. This decline came a day after the rupee had already weakened by 7 paise to finish at 89.94.

Currency traders said the delay in finalising the India-US trade agreement has dampened sentiment, adding pressure on the rupee. Comments attributed to Chief Economic Advisor V Anantha Nageswaran, suggesting the trade pact may only be signed by March, further stoked concerns and pushed the currency to fresh lows.

Analysts noted that while strong domestic equity markets and a softer US dollar provided some cushion, the overall bias for the rupee remains negative. Anuj Choudhary, Research Analyst at MiraeAsset ShareKhan, said the rupee is likely to trade weak in the near term due to lingering trade-deal uncertainty, though any intervention by the Reserve Bank of India could limit the downside. He expects the USDINR spot to remain in the 90.10–90.75 range.

The dollar index was down 0.18 per cent at 98.61 after the US Federal Reserve cut rates and issued a softer-than-expected guidance. Brent crude futures also eased 1.25 per cent to USD 61.43 per barrel, offering some relief on the import bill.

On the trade front, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said Washington has received its “best” ever offers from India as the two countries began a fresh round of discussions on the proposed Bilateral Trade Agreement. However, he pointed to India’s resistance on certain US row crops such as corn, soybeans, wheat and cotton.

In domestic markets, equities rallied, with the Sensex climbing 426.86 points to close at 84,818.13 and the Nifty advancing 140.55 points to 25,898.55. Foreign investors, however, remained net sellers, offloading shares worth Rs 1,651.06 crore on Wednesday.