Overview
- The rupee opened at 90.21, touched an intraday low of 90.50, and settled at 90.28, down 8 paise from Friday’s 90.20 close.
- Renewed geopolitical uncertainty following US military action in Venezuela boosted safe-haven demand for the dollar, with softer crude offering some support to the rupee.
- The currency fell nearly 5% in 2025 and briefly hit a record low near 91.14, with about $18 billion in foreign equity outflows and strong importer hedging weighing on sentiment.
- The RBI has scheduled a $10 billion, three-year dollar-rupee buy/sell swap for January 13, and India’s forex reserves rose to $696.61 billion in the week to December 26.
- Bankers and analysts expect elevated volatility, with views that USD/INR could trade near 90.00–90.60 in the near term and may test 90.50–91 without fresh policy support.