Muted equities amid Trump's H-1B visa fee hike contribute to INR weakness

The Indian rupee depreciated around 15 paise to close at 88.31 (provisional) against the US dollar on Monday, as investors weighed Trump's H-1B visa fee hike impact on Indian remittances amid heightened risk-averse sentiment. Indian shares fell on Monday, contributing to rupee decline with IT stocks pacing the declines after the Trump administration announced sweeping changes to the H-1B visa regime, including a steep $100,000 fee for new applications. It is feared that the steep hike in H-1B visa fees will raise offshore deployment costs and could squeeze profit margins on existing contracts, particularly in cost-sensitive areas like application development and consulting. At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 88.20, then touched an intra-day low of 88.34 and a high of 88.12 against the greenback. The domestic unit finally settled at 88.31 (provisional), lower by 15 paise over its previous close.

 

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