The rupee appreciated 40 paise to 87.68 against the U.S. dollar in early trade on Thursday (October 16, 2025), primarily driven by central bank intervention, a softer dollar index.

Forex traders said other supportive factors like positive domestic equities, lower crude oil prices and renewed foreign fund inflows also boosted investor sentiments.

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 87.76 and then gained ground and touched an early high of 87.68 against the U.S. dollar, registering a gain of 40 paise from its previous close.

On Wednesday, the rupee bounced back sharply by 73 paise to close at 88.08 against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday, posting its biggest intraday gain in nearly four months.

The rupee rose on Wednesday largely on the back of easing global risk sentiment, optimism around India-US trade talks and likely intervention by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

“RBI ensured that the rupee opens higher, thus curbing all speculative trades yesterday and not allowing the rupee to fall past 88.39 on Wednesday,” said Anil Kumar Bhansali, Head of Treasury and Executive Director Finrex Treasury Advisors LLP.

Rupee opened on a positive note and is expected to trade in a range of 87.30 to 88.00 is a clear indication of the RBIs resolve to cut out all speculative trades which were taking the rupee lower.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading lower by 0.28% to 98.51.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, rose 0.74% to $62.37 per barrel in futures trade.

On the domestic equity market front, Sensex jumped 407.67 points to 83,013.10 in early trade, while the Nifty surged 104 points to 25,427.55.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) purchased equities worth ₹68.64 crore on Wednesday, according to exchange data.

Meanwhile, India’s exports grew 6.74% to $36.38 billion in September, while imports jumped 16.6%, widening the trade deficit to $31.15 billion, the highest in over a year.

The rupee witnessed range-bound trading in morning deals on Monday (September 22, 2025) and depreciated 5 paise to 88.21 against the U.S. dollar, as the strength of the American currency in the overseas market and a negative trend in domestic equities weighed on investor sentiments.

Forex traders said the recent hike in H-1B visa fees to $100,000 per year could trigger a sensitivity move in the IT sector, as companies may face margin pressure and reduced remittances due to the potential slowdown in employee deployments to the U.S..

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 88.20, then lost ground and touched 88.21 against the U.S. dollar, registering a decline of 5 paise over its previous close.

On Friday (September 19, 2025), the rupee appreciated 4 paise to close at 88.16 against the U.S. dollar.

On the H-1B visa fees hike, CR Forex Advisors MD Amit Pabari said, beyond the sectoral impact, India’s overall services exports could also take a hit if overseas deployments are curtailed, thereby affecting the country’s external balances.

“This policy shock is likely to weigh on investor sentiment, contribute to equity outflows from the Indian IT sector in the near term, and could also exert pressure on the Indian rupee,” Mr. Pabari added.

Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, rose 0.13% to 97.77.

Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading 0.66% higher at $67.12 per barrel in futures trade.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted on Sunday (September 21, 2025) that the GST reforms kicking in from Monday (September 22, 2025) will accelerate India’s growth story, “Aatmanirbhar Bharat”, and provide a boost to ‘swadeshi’ products to the country’s prosperity.

On the domestic equity market front, the Sensex dropped 475.16 points to 82,151.07 in opening trade, while the Nifty declined 88.95 points to 25,238.10.

Foreign Institutional Investors bought equities worth ₹390.74 crore on a net basis on Friday (September 19, 2025), according to exchange data.

India’s forex reserves jumped $4.698 billion to $702.966 billion for the week ended September 12, the Reserve Bank of India said on Friday (September 19, 2025).

In the previous reporting week, the overall reserves had increased $4.038 billion to $698.268 billion.

Meanwhile, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal will lead an official delegation to the U.S. for trade talks on September 22.

The delegation plans to hold talks with the U.S. team to take forward discussions with a view to achieving an early conclusion of a mutually beneficial trade agreement.

The minister will visit New York and will be accompanied by the special secretary in the ministry, Rajesh Agrawal, and other officials.