The rupee rose 22 paise to 96.51 against the U.S. dollar in early trade on Friday (July 24, 2026), on likely RBI intervention to stem its further slide after global crude oil prices crossed the $100-mark owing to heightened tensions in West Asia.

A softer greenback provided mild support to the local unit while Foreign Institutional Investor outflows, coupled with sustained slide in the domestic equity markets, maintained pressure, forex traders said.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened weaker at 96.81 before rising to 96.51, up 22 paise from its previous close.

The rupee ended 20 paise weaker at 96.73 against the U.S. dollar on Thursday (July 23, 2026).

The U.S. military announced the 13th night of strikes on Thursday (July 23, 2026) against Iran as clashes escalate over shipping routes. The attacks came after Yemen’s Houthis said they attacked two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea, potentially widening the Iran war as international oil topped $100 a barrel.

“The key factors for the weak opening of the rupee were — Brent crude oil remained elevated, increasing dollar demand from Indian oil marketing companies while importer dollar buying remained strong through the session. RBI intervention via state-owned banks prevented a much larger depreciation, while softer dollar index provided only limited support,” Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director, Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP, said.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading marginally down by 0.01% at 101.43.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, crossed the $100-mark, trading 0.12% higher at $100.8 per barrel in futures trade.

On the domestic equity market front, Sensex opened weaker for the fifth day in a row, tumbling 512.07 points to 75,869.38 in early trade while the Nifty was down 153 points to 23,713.60.

Foreign Institutional Investors offloaded equities worth ₹2,999.23 crore on a net basis on Thursday (July 23, 2026), according to exchange data.

The rupee declined 4 paise to close at 96.57 (provisional) against the U.S. dollar on Thursday (July 23, 2026), as heightened hostilities in West Asia kept global crude oil prices elevated.

However, a likely intervention by the RBI provided support to the local unit, forex traders said.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 96.53 and traded in a narrow range of 96.45-96.59 during the day before eventually settling at 96.57 (provisional), down 4 paise from its previous close.

The rupee depreciated by 28 paise to close at 96.53 against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday (July 22, 2026).

“The rupee traded with a negative bias on weak domestic markets and a surge in crude oil prices, which continued to rise as the U.S. struck Iran for the 12th consecutive day while Iran continued to strike U.S. facilities in the Gulf,” Anuj Choudhary, Research Analyst, Mirae Asset ShareKhan, said.

“However, diplomatic talks between the two nations may prevent a sharp fall in the rupee. USD-INR spot price is expected to trade in a range of ₹96.30 to ₹96.85,” Mr. Choudhary said.

V. K. Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Ltd, said, “The negative factor impacting the rupee is the sharp spike in Brent crude following the escalation of the conflict in West Asia, particularly the attack on Saudi oil tankers by the Houthis.”

RBI’s intervention in the market will prevent sharp depreciation in the rupee, he added.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading flat at at 101.12.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading 2.21% higher at $96.15 per barrel in futures trade.

Forex traders said crude oil prices remain elevated amid concerns over the security of oil shipments through the Red Sea and Strait of Hormuz.

On the domestic equity market front, Sensex extended losses on Thursday (July 23, 2026) declining 363.66 points to settle at 76,391.39, while the Nifty was down 126.65 points to 23,869.60.

Foreign Institutional Investors offloaded equities worth ₹819.20 crore on a net basis on Wednesday (July 22, 2026), according to exchange data.

The rupee rose 14 paise to settle at 96.28 (provisional) against the U.S. dollar on Friday (July 17, 2026), on possible intervention from the Reserve Bank of India after four consecutive sessions of decline.

Elevated tensions in West Asia, which pushed up global oil prices, maintained pressure on the local unit, forex traders said.

In the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 96.35 against the greenback and traded in a narrow range of 96.27-96.41. Eventually it settled at 96.28 (provisional), up 14 paise from its previous close.

The rupee depreciated for the fourth straight day on Thursday (July 16, 2026), shedding 17 paise to settle at 96.42 against the U.S. dollar.

The U.S. expanded its airstrike campaign against Iran early on Friday (July 17, 2026), by increasingly hitting bridges, part of President Donald Trump’s threats to start striking infrastructure to pressure Tehran to ease its chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz. Iran launched new missile attacks against U.S.-allied nations in West Asia and warned that its attacks would escalate.

“The rupee was broadly steady on Friday (July 17, 2026), after a likely Reserve Bank of India (RBI) intervention halted its four-day decline,” Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director, Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP.

“With no major domestic triggers, the currency continued to consolidate after recent weakness. However, the broader bias for the rupee remains weak as elevated crude oil prices and cautious foreign fund flows continue to weigh on sentiment.

“Market participants will closely monitor global developments, crude oil movement, and FII activity for the next directional move,” Jateen Trivedi, VP Research Analyst—Commodity and Currency, LKP Securities, said.

Technically, the rupee is expected to trade in the 96.00-96.55 range, with the overall trend continuing to favour weakness, Mr. Trivedi said.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading marginally down by 0.01% at 100.75.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading 1.60% higher at $85.58 per barrel in futures trade.

On the domestic equity market front, Sensex jumped 964.58 points to settle at 78,151.45, while Nifty surged 261.55 points to 24,334.30.

Foreign Institutional Investors offloaded equities worth ₹4,205.56 crore on a net basis on Thursday (July 16, 2026), according to exchange data.

The rupee appreciated by 7 paise to settle at 95.41 (provisional) against the U.S. dollar on Thursday (July 9, 2026) even as crude oil prices firmed up and the greenback strengthened in the global markets.

A recovery in the stock markets and dollar selling by state-run lenders supported the local currency amid rising volatility triggered by the fresh escalation in the West Asia crisis.

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened lower by 4 paise at 95.52 against the U.S. dollar and later traded in the range of 95.58 to 95.28 during the day. It settled at 95.41 (provisional), up 7 paise from the previous close. The rupee had declined by 52 paise to settle at 95.48 against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday (July 8).

Analysts said suspected RBI intervention provided support to the local unit, while elevated crude oil prices and a stronger dollar weighed on it.

“The rupee appreciated today after coming under pressure yesterday. The Reserve Bank of India’s intervention supported the rupee while state-owned banks sold dollars, widely believed to be on behalf of the RBI. However, Middle East tensions remain the biggest negative factor, with fresh military action involving the US and Iran keeping concerns alive over the security of the Strait of Hormuz,” said Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director, Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading at 100.77, up 0.01%.

Brent crude futures were trading at $78.40 per barrel, higher by 0.46%.

The U.S. launched new airstrikes against Iran on Thursday (July 9), and Tehran responded by targeting Gulf countries in an exchange of fire that threatened an interim deal intended to help end the war in West Asia.

On the domestic equity market front, Sensex rebounded by 238.22 points to settle at 76,741.82 while Nifty was up 80.75 points to 23,962.80.

Foreign institutional investors purchased equities worth ₹1,962.80 crore on a net basis on Wednesday (July 8), according to exchange data.

The rupee rebounded on Monday (November 24, 2025) from record lows, rising 49 paise to 89.17 against the greenback in early trade on U.S. dollar selling by banks and a dip in global crude oil prices.

A positive opening in the domestic equity markets and intervention by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) lent support to the domestic unit, according to forex traders.

The rupee plunged 98 paise to close at its lifetime low of 89.66 against the U.S. dollar on Friday (November 21, 2025), due to a huge demand for the greenback in the domestic forex market amid widespread selling pressure in local and global equities and trade-related uncertainties.

In the steepest fall in over three years, the domestic currency nosedived 98 paise to finally settle at 89.66 against the American currency.

The previous biggest one-day fall was recorded at 99 paise against the dollar on February 24, 2022.

“Most traders believe that rupee may not cross 90 as it may remain protected for a few more weeks and expect a positive (India-U.S.) trade deal outcome by December-end. The market is bracing for more weakness after the rupee slid to a record low on Friday (November 21),” Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director, Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP, said.

In the absence of a trade deal, the 90-mark doesn’t seem quite distant now, he added.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was marginally up by 0.01% at 100.18.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading 0.10% lower at $62.50 per barrel in futures trade.

On the domestic equity market front, the Sensex climbed 218.44 points to 85,450.36 in early trade while Nifty was up 69.4 points to 26,137.55.

Foreign institutional investors sold equities worth ₹1,766.05 crore on a net basis on Friday (November 21, 2025), according to exchange data.

Forex reserves jumped $5.543 billion to $692.576 billion during the week ended November 14 due to a steep increase in the value of gold reserves, the RBI said on Friday (November 21).

The rupee recovered 14 paise from its all-time low to 87.66 against the U.S. dollar in early trade on Thursday (July 31, 2025) on suspected RBI intervention, after U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs of 25% and the penalty for buying Russian Crude and Arms.

Forex traders said the rupee, which plunged 89 paise, logging its steepest single-day fall in over three years, recovered some lost ground but is trading with a negative bias.

At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 87.66, then touched an early low of 87.74 against the U.S. dollar.

On Wednesday (July 30, 2025), the rupee closed at an all-time low of 87.80 against the U.S. dollar after America announced a sweeping 25% tariff on Indian imports in the absence of a trade deal ahead of the August 1 deadline.

“The rupee which is already down by more than 3% since the start of the year after reaching a high of 83.75 in the month of April continued to fall on the news of Trump’s tariffs of 25% and the penalty for buying Russian Crude and Arms,” said Anil Kumar Bhansali Head of Treasury and Executive DirectorFinrex Treasury Advisors LLP.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, fell by 0.03 per cent to 99.78.

Brent oil prices fell 0.19% to $73.10 per barrel.

Meanwhile, the US FED held interest rates steady and signalled it is too early to consider rate cuts, which has supported the dollar throughout the month of July.

“With the RBI controlling the rupee intermittently and oil companies on a buying spree of US dollars before the Trump tariffs on Russia are in place after about 10 days, the rupee was unable to make any headway…, ” Bhansali added.