The rupee depreciated by 14 paise, closing at 90.09 (provisional) against the US dollar on Monday, as high crude oil prices and continued foreign fund outflows negatively affected investor sentiment.
Forex traders indicated that several factors, including sustained demand for the US dollar from importers and ongoing foreign fund outflows from the equity market, alongside uncertainty regarding the India-US trade deal, contributed to fragile market conditions.
In the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 90.07 but fell to an intra-day low of 90.26 against the US dollar, marking a decline of 31 paise from the previous session. By the end of trading on Monday, the rupee had settled at 90.09, down 14 paise from its earlier close.
On Friday, the rupee had closed at 89.95 against the dollar after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cut the key policy interest rate for the first time in six months. RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra stated Friday that the central bank does not target a specific range for the rupee, allowing it to find its own level in the forex market. “We don’t target any price levels or any bands. We let the markets determine the prices. We believe that markets, especially in the long run, are very efficient. It’s a very deep market,” he commented during a post-monetary policy press conference.
Investors are now concentrating on the Federal Reserve’s policy decisions scheduled for December 9-10, with markets indicating a nearly 90 percent likelihood of a rate cut. Concurrently, discussions on the first phase of a proposed bilateral trade agreement between India and the United States will commence on December 10.
The dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was slightly lower at 98.98, reflecting a 0.01 percent decrease.
Meanwhile, Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was down 0.71 percent, trading at $63.28 per barrel in futures markets.
On the domestic equity front, the Sensex fell by 609.68 points, settling at 85,102.69, while the Nifty dropped 225.90 points to close at 25,960.55. Foreign institutional investors sold equities worth ₹438.90 crore on Friday, as per exchange data.
Additionally, India’s foreign exchange reserves decreased by $1.877 billion to $686.227 billion for the week ending November 28, according to RBI data. The preceding week had also seen a decline of $4.472 billion, bringing the overall reserves down to $688.104 billion.
Published on December 8, 2025.
