October 31, 2025

The Indian rupee showed some life on Friday morning, inching up 5 paise to trade at 88.64 against the mighty US dollar. What’s behind this tiny jump? Lower crude oil prices and a weaker American currency gave the rupee a little boost, say forex traders. But don’t get too excited just yet! Foreign investors kept selling Indian stocks, which stopped the rupee from sprinting ahead. The day started with the rupee opening at 88.60, briefly touching 88.59 before settling at 88.64, up slightly from its last close. Just a day before, on Thursday, the rupee took a big hit, dropping 47 paise to 88.69. That happened after the US Federal Reserve slashed interest rates by 25 basis points, as expected. However, Fed Chair Jerome Powell threw cold water on hopes for more cuts, saying, “U.S. inflation staying above the target level and uncertainties in the labour market” could hold back further easing by December. Meanwhile, the dollar index, a gauge of the greenback’s strength against six major currencies, slipped 0.02% to 99.33. On the crude front, Brent oil prices dipped 0.68% to $64.56 per barrel in futures trading. Indian stock markets showed some sparkle though - the Sensex climbed 192.31 points (0.23%) to 84,596.77, and the Nifty added 42.05 points (0.16%) to reach 25,919.90 in early trade. Despite the rise in markets, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) were net sellers, offloading shares worth ₹3,077.59 crore on Thursday. So, the rupee’s small recovery is a fight between positive trends in oil and the dollar, against selling pressure in equities. Will it gather steam next week? Stay tuned!

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Tags: Rupee, Usd, Forex, Crude oil, Foreign investment, Stock market,