The Indian rupee traded within a narrow range on Monday morning, depreciating by 5 paise to reach 88.21 against the US dollar. This decline was influenced by the strength of the US dollar in international markets and a downturn in domestic equities that affected investor sentiment.
Forex traders noted that the recent increase in H-1B visa fees to $100,000 per year could potentially impact the IT sector significantly. Companies might experience margin pressures and reduced remittances due to a possible slowdown in employee deployments to the US.
In the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 88.20 but lost ground, falling to 88.21 against the dollar, marking a decline of 5 paise from the previous close. On Friday, the rupee had appreciated by 4 paise, closing at 88.16 against the greenback.
Amit Pabari, Managing Director of CR Forex Advisors, stated that beyond immediate sectoral effects, India’s overall services exports could suffer if overseas deployment is restricted, influencing the country’s external balances. Pabari added that this policy change is likely to dampen investor sentiment and could lead to equity outflows from the Indian IT sector in the near term, further stressing the rupee.
Concurrently, the dollar index, which measures the dollar’s strength against a basket of six currencies, rose by 0.13 percent to 97.77. In the global oil market, Brent crude was trading 0.66 percent higher at $67.12 per barrel in futures trading.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted on Sunday that the introduction of Goods and Services Tax (GST) reforms would accelerate India’s economic growth and support ‘swadeshi’ products, contributing to national prosperity.
On the domestic equity front, the Sensex dropped 475.16 points to 82,151.07 at the opening, while the Nifty index fell by 88.95 points to 25,238.10. Foreign Institutional Investors had net purchased equities worth Rs 390.74 crore on Friday, according to exchange data.
India’s foreign exchange reserves rose by $4.698 billion to $702.966 billion for the week ending September 12, as reported by the Reserve Bank of India. The previous week saw an increase of $4.038 billion, rising from $694.230 billion to $698.268 billion.
In related news, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal will lead an official delegation to the US for trade discussions scheduled for September 22. The delegation aims to advance negotiations for a mutually beneficial trade agreement and will include Rajesh Agrawal, the special secretary in the ministry, among other officials.
Published on September 22, 2025.
