The rupee has fallen more than 3.5% this year, making it one of the region's worst performers. Its latest slide followed a sharp hike in H-1B visa fees that threatens profits in India's IT sector, adding to pressure from 50% U.S. tariffs on Indian goods, the highest in Asia. "The risk is that more restrictions on services exports follow, and the lowering of the 50% tariff takes longer than markets are factoring in." The local unit was consistently cited as a currency with a weaker outlook in a September emerging market sentiment survey conducted by HSBC. "Brazil and India, which were highlighted as the top economies in the previous survey, lost prominence after both were targeted with a 50% tariff rate," the survey said.