Commodities & Forex
Rupee at 94.92 as FIIs pull ₹49,900 crore from Indian shares in October
A softer dollar overnight helps, but steady foreign selling and costly oil keep the rupee near 95.
The rupee last closed at 94.92 per US dollar on Monday, 3 paise weaker, before Tuesday's Dussehra holiday. It reopens today with mixed signals: the dollar index, which measures the dollar against six major currencies, fell 0.26% to 101.71 overnight, which usually helps the rupee, but Brent oil is back near $110.
The bigger pressure is money leaving India. FIIs, foreign institutional investors such as big overseas funds, sold a net ₹1,148.6 crore of Indian shares on Monday and about ₹49,918 crore so far in October, according to provisional data compiled by 5paisa. DIIs, domestic institutional investors such as Indian mutual funds and insurers, bought ₹3,201 crore on Monday and about ₹51,369 crore this month. When foreign funds sell, they convert rupees into dollars, which pushes the rupee down.
Worked example: a student paying $20,000 in US college fees needs about ₹18.98 lakh at 94.92. Every 1-rupee fall in the rupee adds ₹20,000 to that bill, while an exporter earning $20,000 gets ₹20,000 more.
Key takeaway: watch FII flows and oil; together they decide most of the rupee's daily move.
| Market | Level | Change |
|---|---|---|
| FII net, 19 OctBuy 11,240.6 / Sell 12,389.3 | -1,148.6 | |
| DII net, 19 OctBuy 14,781.3 / Sell 11,580.1 | +3,201.2 | |
| FII net, 16 Oct | +1,165.9 | |
| FII net, 15 Oct | -5,285.4 | |
| FII net, October to date | -49,917.6 | |
| DII net, October to date | +51,369.2 |
A slightly weaker dollar after softer US yields gives emerging-market currencies some relief, but oil-importing countries like India remain under pressure.
A weak rupee makes imports such as oil, electronics and gold costlier and raises the cost of foreign travel and education, while it helps exporters like IT and pharma companies.
Written with AI assistance by TotalMarket. Based on the sources linked in this article; key facts and data should be checked against the original sources. This article is for information only and is not investment advice.
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