Rupee in downward spiral: Reserve Bank under pressure to curb market rout

The six-member monetary policy committee of the RBI will make its next rate decision on October 5

India has a currency problem and it’s not going away anytime soon.

A current-account deficit at a five-year high, elevated oil prices and an emerging-market sell-off have conspired to push the rupee to below 72 per dollar last week, taking its decline since the beginning of the year to almost 12 percent, the worst performer in Asia.

Pressure is mounting on the Reserve Bank of India to take stronger action to stem the currency’s slide. The central bank has already raised interest rates twice since June and depleted billions of dollars to bolster the currency, but with little success.

Here are some conventional