The rupee breached the 90-mark and hit a lifetime low against the US dollar on December 3. After starting the year around the 85.7-mark in January, the rupee has consistently weakened. While currencies across Asia are also under pressure from a strong dollar, the rupee’s decline is significantly steeper. The crisis is being amplified by the strength of the US dollar, which crossed over 100 in November, showing global demand for the greenback. Foreign investors have aggressively withdrawn funds from Indian equities. Uncertainty over the pending India-US trade deal and the ongoing negative effects of US tariffs on Indian goods pushed up the October trade deficit to the highest this year. The current account deficit has widened in the September quarter. Forex reserves have also dipped in October. Meanwhile, a long stretch of undervaluation continues, with the rupee’s Real Effective Exchange Rate being under 100 since February, which is unusual.