The Indian rupee continued its upward momentum for the seventh consecutive session, rising by 31 paise to close at 85.67 (provisional) against the US dollar on Monday.
This gain wiped out all of the rupee’s losses for 2025, boosted by positive trends in domestic equity markets, fresh foreign capital inflows, and lower global crude prices. Additionally, the ongoing weakness of the US dollar further supported the rupee’s rise.
The rupee opened at 85.93, touched an intraday high of 85.49, and a low of 86.01 before closing at 85.67. This marks a gain of 31 paise from its previous closing. On Friday, the rupee had gained 38 paise to close at 85.98, according to news agency PTI.
This marks the seventh consecutive session of gains for the rupee, which has appreciated by 154 paise during this period. The rupee has now recovered all of its losses for 2025, with the year starting with a closing rate of 85.64 against the dollar on December 31, 2024.
Dilip Parmar, Research Analyst at HDFC Securities, noted that the rupee’s recovery was driven by foreign banks and exporters selling dollars ahead of the financial year-end, while state-run banks stayed out of the market. The positive sentiment surrounding the upcoming visit of a US representative to India and foreign institutional investors‘ buying activity in the domestic equity markets helped support the rupee.
In the near term, the spot USD/INR is expected to find support at 85.20 and resistance at 86.05, according to Parmar.
The dollar index, which tracks the greenback’s strength against six major currencies, was 0.09% lower at 103.99, while Brent crude rose by 0.54% to USD 72.55 per barrel.
On the domestic front, the 30-share BSE Sensex surged by 1.40%, gaining 1,078.87 points to close at 77,984.38, while the Nifty advanced 1.32%, rising 307.95 points to 23,658.35.
Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) bought equities worth Rs 7,470.36 crore on a net basis last Friday, further boosting market sentiment. India’s forex reserves increased by USD 305 million to USD 654.271 billion for the week ending March 14, according to the Reserve Bank of India.
The equity market has seen a reduction in selling pressure from FPIs, with outflows narrowing to Rs 1,794 crore (USD 194 million) last week, as global concerns eased and optimism around potential de-escalation in the Russia-Ukraine conflict grew.
