Mumbai: The Indian rupee declined the most in about six years, mirroring the yuan’s slide to record lows, as fresh concerns over souring trade relations between the US and China triggered a global sell-off in emerging-market currencies.Separately, New Delhi’s move to end Jammu and Kashmir ’s special status through a decree raised concerns that domestic politics would weigh on the economy, exacerbating the currency’s decline.The rupee lost 1.63% Monday to close at 70.74 to a dollar, the weakest level since March 1. The decline is the most since September, 2013, Bloomberg data showed. Bond yields, meanwhile, climbed four basis points to 6.39%.“The yuan's drastic fall and domestic politics were early triggers for the rupee's fall Monday," said Manoj Rane, managing director at Sionic India, a global financial advisory firm. "The weakness is likely to persist the next two weeks. While traders are unwinding their short-dollar positions, they are also ready for volatile sessions ahead.”The one-month Bloomberg volatility surged to 6.79% versus 5.03% last week.“With the Chinese yuan breaking the crucial level of 7, other emerging-market currencies came under pressure,” said Anindya Banerjee, currency analyst at Kotak Securities. “The local unit would remain under pressure in the ‘trade-war atmosphere’. Timely central intervention helped check a further fall in the rupee.”The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is said to have intervened in both the spot and futures markets, with some state-owned banks stepping in to stem the decline, dealers said.Global currency markets got into a free fall after China’s central bank allowed the yuan to slide to a record low against the US dollar, a move many investors interpreted as Beijing’s nod to use the currency as a weapon in its trade war with Washington. Almost all emerging markets saw their currencies decline.South Korean won fell below 1,200 for the first time since 2017.Indonesia’s rupiah declined 0.6% to 14,275 per dollar, Bloomberg data showed. The Malaysian ringgit fell 0.4% to 4.176 per dollar.Back home, growth concerns have also weighed on the currency even as budgetary moves to tax the super-rich triggered an exodus from equities by overseas investors. Foreign portfolio investors have sold a net Rs 12,419 crore in equities while buying Rs 9,433 crore net in debt securities in July, show data from the National Securities Depository. In August, they sold Rs 5,522 crore of equities while buying Rs 755 crore worth of debt paper.“Overseas investors have not yet really exited but shifted mostly to sovereign debt securities from equities," said K N Dey, founder of United Forex , a Mumbai-based firm engaged in currency trading. “The plunge in the rupee's value, primarily triggered by the yuan move, is also a wake-up call for uncovered importers."India’s monetary policy will also weigh on the currency. The central bank is scheduled to take call on credit costs later this week.