RBI net sold $10 bn in December, slightly higher than November: Bulletin

RBI net sold $10 billion in December, with short dollar positions in the forward market easing to $62.35 billion, even as the rupee's REER slipped to 94.76, the monthly bulletin showed

The Reserve Bank of India net sold $10 billion in December, against a net sale of $9.7 billion in November, according to the central bank’s monthly bulletin.

 

The central bank bought $18.3 billion, while it sold $28.3 billion during the month.

 

In the current financial year up to December, the central bank has net sold $53.3 billion, against a net sale of $36.1 billion in the same period in the previous financial year.

 

The outstanding net short dollar position in the rupee forward market fell to $62.35 billion by the end of December, against $66.04 billion by end-November. Short positions of less than one year fell by around $7 billion, while those of more than one year rose by around $3 billion.

 

 

Of the $62 billion net short dollar position, $20.2 billion was in one-month contracts, $5.9 billion in one–three-month tenures, $4.3 billion is set to mature between three months and a year, and the remaining $31 billion was in contracts of more than a year.

 

As of January 2026, the Real Effective Exchange Rate (REER) of the Indian rupee stood at 94.76, against 95.30 in December 2025.

 

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.