India faces worst economic crisis in 20 years
Tensions over a possible U.S.-led military strike against Syria are driving up the U.S. dollar, often seen as a safe-haven for investors. Meanwhile, other currencies around the globe are suffering — especially India’s rupee. A perfect storm of economic factors, including rising U.S. interest rates that make the dollar more attractive to investors and an underlying weakness in India’s economy, are leading to India’s worst economic crisis in two decades.
The rupee fell below 68 to the dollar on Wednesday, a drop of 3.4 percent. Some analysts predict the rupee could go as low as 75 to the dollar.
“Every morning, Indian businessmen get up and try to predict how much lower the rupee is going to fall,” says Rahul Tandon of the BBC, on the street in Calcutta. “Hour after hour, foreign investors are moving their money out of the world’s largest democracy.”
There’s a lot happening in the world. Through it all, Marketplace is here for you.
You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible.
Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.
