The Rupee opened to a record low on Monday, as ?an escalating Middle East conflict stoked ?worries over sustained disruption of energy supplies, threatening the outlook for Asia's third-largest economy. Asian currencies were ?down between 0.1% to 0.8% as hopes ?for an off-ramp to hostilities dimmed over the weekend with Washington and Tehran trading threats as ?the war entered its fourth week. The currency ?has fallen 3% this month, hitting an all-time low of 93.7350 ?on Friday, with higher oil prices exacerbating risks to India’s ?current account deficit, feeding into inflation pressures and clouding the growth ?outlook. The rise in ?U.S. Treasury ?yields and persistent equity outflows are compounding the pressure on the rupee, already weighed down by importer-hedging demand, ?particularly from oil companies, bankers said. The 10-year U.S. Treasury ?yield climbed ?more than 10 basis points on Friday and inched up further in Asia to top 4.4%. The selloff in European bonds and worries over inflation ?prompted ?investors to demand higher yields. Foreign investors have ?pulled out alomst $10 billion from Indian equities this month, reflecting concerns over the impact of higher ?oil prices on India’s economy.The ?conflict has boosted oil prices by over 50% ?this ?month. The International Energy Agency has said the crisis is worse than the two oil shocks of the 1970s put ?together. The rupee, ?among the ?currencies most exposed to sustained oil price increases, has weakened ?about 3% since the war ?began. The dollar rose on Monday as escalating retaliatory ?threats in the Middle East conflict curbed risk appetite and lifted demand for safe-haven assets. The Australian dollar, a liquid proxy for global sentiment, ?slid as equities sold off across Asia. Japan's top currency diplomat said his government is ready to take action to counter foreign-exchange volatility as the yen edged lower. The dollar index , which measures the U.S. currency against a basket of peers, advanced 0.08% to 99.62. The gauge on Friday closed out its first weekly decline since the start of the war, as surging oil prices on inflation prompted central banks to turn hawkish. The euro slid 0.16% to $1.1552, as the yen weakened 0.14% to 159.45 per dollar. Sterling fell 0.06% to $1.3331. The conflict broadened ?on Monday, with Israel announcing wide-scale strikes on Tehran, while Saudi Arabia said two ballistic missiles had been launched at Riyadh. With the yen weakening back toward the key 160 per dollar level, Japan's top currency diplomat Atsushi Mimura signaled caution about speculative activity in oil markets spilling over into foreign exchange. Brent crude futures fell 1 cent to $112.18 a barrel by 0202 GMT after settling on Friday at their highest since July 2022. U.S. West Texas Intermediate was at $98.75 a ?barrel, up 52 cents, after the previous session's gain of 2.27%.......