What happened
The rupee gained 3 paise to close at 95.25 against the US dollar on 29 October 2026, according to the Economic Times. It opened at 95.20 and touched an intra-day low of 95.38. A paisa is one-hundredth of a rupee.
The report said positive trends in domestic markets and lower crude oil prices helped steady the currency. It added that analysts expect pressure on the rupee from a strong dollar and hawkish signals from the US Federal Reserve. “Hawkish” means leaning towards higher interest rates.
The week so far
- 26 October: the rupee fell 29 paise to a provisional close of 95.22, its third straight daily loss. It had opened at 94.92 and hit a low of 95.26. Over three sessions it lost 84 paise, after closing at 94.93 on Friday, 23 October.
- 27 October: in early trade it was down 7 paise at 95.22 after opening at 95.17.
- 28 October: it fell 21 paise to a provisional 95.28, after opening at 95.01 and touching a low of 95.29.
- 29 October: it rose 3 paise to 95.25.
For 26 October, the reports said the fall came amid elevated crude oil prices and geopolitical tensions in West Asia. ThePrint’s version of the same report put the close at 95.15, so provisional figures differed between outlets.
On that day, the dollar index, which measures the dollar against a basket of six currencies, was up 0.01% at 101.82. Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was down 1.41% at $115.08 per barrel in futures trade.
What it means for you
A weaker rupee raises the rupee cost of anything paid for in dollars, such as imported goods, foreign travel or overseas tuition. For Indians abroad sending money home, each dollar converts into slightly more rupees. You can check conversions with the currency converter.
Analysts quoted on 26 October gave ranges to watch. Anuj Choudhary of Mirae Asset Sharekhan expected USD-INR spot to trade between 94.90 and 95.50 and said RBI intervention may support the rupee at lower levels. Gaurav Garg of Lemonn named 94.30 to 95.50 as the range, with a sustained move above ₹95.50 signalling renewed pressure.
Background
RBI data released on 23 October showed India’s forex reserves fell by $5.011 billion to $721.016 billion in the week ended 16 October. The previous week’s reserves had dropped by $8.578 billion to $726.027 billion.
On 26 October, the Sensex rose 482.92 points to 73,606.75 and the Nifty gained 153.20 points to 22,753.20. Foreign institutional investors bought equities worth ₹887.65 crore on a net basis on 23 October, per exchange data.
