Rupee settles at record low of 96.35 against U.S. dollar

The rupee weakened further and closed astatine a grounds debased of 96.35 (provisional) against the U.S. dollar connected Monday (May 18, 2026), pressured by rising crude lipid prices connected the backmost of ongoing geopolitical tensions and a beardown dollar.

Forex traders said the planetary marketplace sentiments proceed to dampen amid simmering tensions betwixt the U.S. and Iran.

Moreover, emerging marketplace economies, including India, proceed to consciousness the unit of rising crude lipid prices, arsenic elevated rates summation the outflows of U.S. dollars, on with the outflows already happening owed to FPIs, traders said.

At the interbank overseas speech market, the rupee opened astatine 96.19, past fell further to 96.39 against the U.S. dollar, registering a autumn of 58 paise from its erstwhile close.

At the extremity of Monday’s trading session, the rupee was quoted astatine 96.35 (provisional), down 54 paise from its erstwhile close.

On Friday (May 15, 2026), the rupee crashed beneath the 96/USD people earlier closing astatine an all-time debased of 95.81 against the U.S. dollar.

“We expect the rupee to commercialized with a antagonistic bias amid a beardown dollar and rising U.S. treasury yields. Ongoing geopolitical tensions and FII outflows whitethorn besides unit the rupee. However, immoderate involution by the RBI and definite restrictions connected the import of golden and metallic whitethorn enactment the rupee astatine little levels. USDINR spot terms is expected to commercialized successful a scope of 96 to 96.60,” Anuj Choudhary, Research Analyst, Commodities Research, Mirae Asset Sharekhan, said.

The dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s spot against a handbasket of six currencies, was trading astatine 99.14, little by 0.14% owed to simmering Iran tensions.

Brent crude, the planetary lipid benchmark, was trading up 0.65% astatine $109.97 per tube successful futures trade.

Foreign Institutional Investors remained nett buyers for the 2nd consecutive session, purchasing equities worthy Rs 1,329.17 crore connected Friday (May 15, 2026), according to speech data.

India’s forex reserves jumped $6.295 cardinal to $696.988 cardinal during the week ended May 8, the Reserve Bank said connected Friday (May 15, 2026). Overall reserves had dropped by $7.794 cardinal to $690.693 cardinal successful the erstwhile reporting week.

Meanwhile, wrong days of levying precocious customs duties connected precious metals, the authorities connected Saturday (May 16, 2026) imposed import curbs connected metallic by putting the metallic nether a licensed authorities for inbound shipments.

The government, connected May 13, hiked import work connected precious metals — golden and metallic — from 6% to 15%. The effectual work (including 3% IGST) is implicit 18%.

It was hiked to power the outflow of forex by curbing non-essential imports.