RBI net-sold $12 bn in October, highest monthly sale in 10 months

RBI net sold $11.8 billion in October and supplied dollars to cap rupee weakness near 88.80/$, even as its net short forward position rose to $63.6 billion, the bulletin showed

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) net sold $11.8 billion in October, its highest monthly dollar sale since December 2024, according to the central bank’s monthly bulletin. This followed net dollar sales of $7.9 billion in September.

 

In October, the RBI steadily supplied dollars to prevent the rupee from weakening beyond 88.80 per dollar.

 

The outstanding net short dollar position in the rupee forward market rose to $63.6 billion at the end of October, from $59.4 billion a month earlier. 

 

Of the $63.6 billion net short dollar position, $17 billion was in one-month contracts, $19.76 billion in one- to three-month tenures, $610 million is set to mature between three months and one year, while the remaining $26.1 billion is in contracts with maturities of over one year.

 

As of November 2025, the real effective exchange rate (REER) of the Indian rupee stood at 97.51, unchanged from October.

 

The REER adjusts the Nominal Effective Exchange Rate (NEER) to account for inflation differentials between India and its major trading partners. A REER value above 100 indicates an appreciation of the rupee relative to the base year, which can potentially make Indian exports less competitive in global markets.