Forex

Rupee Falls for a Third Session to About 95.2 per Dollar as Importers Buy Dollars and Oil Stays Elevated

The Indian rupee weakened for a third straight session on Monday, settling near 95.2 per U.S. dollar as importer dollar demand, high crude prices and foreign outflows weighed on the currency.

Oct 26, 2026 - 12:14

0 2

The Indian rupee weakened against the U.S. dollar for a third consecutive session on Monday, October 26, 2026, as importers stepped up dollar purchases and elevated crude oil prices and foreign selling of Indian equities continued to weigh on the currency.

According to a Reuters report published by The Hindu BusinessLine, the rupee opened little changed but slipped to end at 95.1850 per dollar, down 0.3% for the day and about 0.8% over three sessions. Domestic news agency PTI, in a report carried by The Hindu, put the provisional close at 95.22 at the interbank foreign exchange market, a decline of 29 paise from the previous close. The two reports use different reference rates, which accounts for the small gap between the figures.

How the session unfolded

PTI reported that the rupee opened at 94.92, weakened to an intraday low of 95.26 and settled at 95.22 provisionally. On Friday, October 23, the currency had fallen 12 paise to close at 94.93, and it has lost 84 paise over the last three sessions, according to the agency.

Traders cited by Reuters said the rupee had found support in recent sessions from dollar sales by the Reserve Bank of India and from inflows linked to the Jio Platforms initial public offering. The absence of that support on Monday left the currency more exposed to importers' dollar demand, they said.

Oil and foreign outflows

Crude is a central factor for the rupee because India imports most of the oil it consumes. Benchmark Brent rose for a third straight week last week and has gained around 13% over that span amid concerns about supply disruptions after Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia, Reuters reported. Brent traded around $115 a barrel in Asian hours on Monday. PTI reported Brent was down 1.41% at $115.08 in futures trade during the Indian session.

Reuters noted that higher oil prices could widen India's import bill, add to inflationary pressures, push companies to increase currency hedges and make foreign investors more cautious toward Indian assets.

Foreign investors have net sold nearly $5 billion of Indian equities so far in October, following net sales of $3.75 billion in September, depository data cited by Reuters showed. PTI separately reported that foreign institutional investors were net buyers of â‚¹887.65 crore of equities on Friday, October 23, according to exchange data.

"If the geopolitical conflict continues, there will be pressure on oil prices, currency and broader earnings recovery," Vaibhav Shah, head of products, business strategy and international business at Mirae Asset Mutual Fund, told Reuters. "Global capital has moved toward markets with direct exposure to the chip and artificial intelligence boom," he said.

Ranges analysts are watching

Anuj Choudhary, research analyst at Mirae Asset Sharekhan, told PTI he expected the USD/INR spot rate to trade in a range of 94.90 to 95.50, and said intervention by the RBI could support the rupee at lower levels. Gaurav Garg, head of research at Lemonn, cited 94.30 to 95.50 as the immediate range to monitor, saying a sustained move above 95.50 would indicate renewed depreciation pressure, while a break below 94.30 could extend a recovery.

Reserves, the dollar and the Fed

RBI data released on Friday showed India's foreign exchange reserves fell by $5.011 billion to $721.016 billion in the week ended October 16, after a decline of $8.578 billion in the previous reporting week, PTI reported.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major currencies, was up 0.01% at 101.82 during the Indian session, according to PTI. CNBC reported that major currencies traded in tight ranges on Monday at the start of a week in which the Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank and the Bank of Japan are all expected to hold rates steady. The Fed announces its decision on Wednesday, and Reuters said a rate pause is widely expected, with market attention on the future rate path.

Indian equities rose on Monday, which traders said cushioned the rupee's decline. PTI reported the Sensex closed 482.92 points higher at 73,606.75 and the Nifty rose 153.20 points to 22,753.20.