RBI defended rupee with $8.94 billion net dollar sale in April: Bulletin

The central bank remained a net seller in the spot forex market as the rupee came under pressure from geopolitical tensions and persistent foreign outflows

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) net sold $8.94 billion in April, against a net sale of $9.76 billion in March, according to the central bank’s monthly bulletin. The rupee remained under pressure during the month amid geopolitical tensions and continuous foreign outflows.

 

The central bank bought $16.23 billion and sold $25.17 billion during the month. The local currency depreciated by 0.11 per cent in April.

 

The RBI had net sold $53.13 billion in the spot foreign exchange market in 2025-26, the highest net dollar sale by the central bank in a financial year. During 2024-25, the central bank had net sold $34.51 billion.

 

 

The outstanding net short dollar position in the forward market decreased for the first time in six months to $95.3 billion by the end of April from $103.06 billion at the end of March.

 

Short positions of less than one year fell to $44.58 billion by the end of April, against $50.26 billion at the end of March. Short positions with a maturity of more than one year fell by around $2 billion to $50.73 billion.

 

Of the $95 billion net short dollar position, $13.52 billion was in one-month contracts, $10.9 billion in one- to three-month tenures, and $20.15 billion was set to mature between three months and a year. The remaining $50 billion was in contracts of more than one year.

 

As of May, the real effective exchange rate (Reer) of the Indian rupee stood at 86.2, against 87.76 in April. 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, potentially making Indian exports less competitive in global markets.