Indian rupee hits new record low against dollar

MUMBAI, Dec 15 (AFP): The Indian rupee continued its downward spiral against the US dollar Thursday, hitting another record low due to concerns over the eurozone debt crisis and weak domestic data. The Indian unit -- Asia's worst performing currency this year -- fell to a low of 54.3 to the dollar, extending a slide that has seen it lose more than 20 percent of its value against the greenback in 2011. India's central bank has said it will act to prevent a downward spiral of the rupee, which has been hit by global financial uncertainty, as investors abandon riskier emerging market currencies for safe havens. The rupee has also come under severe pressure from negative domestic data showing a slowdown in economic growth, a contraction in industrial output, stubborn inflation and rising fiscal and current account deficits.