Rupee advances 42ps to 91.51/$

Mumbai: The rupee gained 42 paise to close at 91.51 (provisional) against the US dollar, a day after the Union Budget 2026-27 was presented, largely as crude oil prices retreated from their elevated levels. Forex traders said the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) seemed to be defending the 92 per dollar level with a lot of resolve.

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 91.95 against the US dollar, then gained some ground to touch an intraday high of 91.45 and a low of 91.95 against the greenback. At the end of the trading session on Monday, the rupee was quoted at 91.51 (provisional) against the greenback, registering a gain of 42 paise from its previous close.

On Friday, the rupee hit a record low of 92.02 before ending 6 paise higher at 91.93 against the US dollar. For the rupee, the Budget offered reassurance, not relief, and the government’s high borrowing plan is likely to weigh on investor sentiments going ahead.

The government is likely to borrow Rs 17.2 lakh crore in the next financial year to fund its fiscal deficit projected at 4.3 per cent of the GDP. “Overall, it looks like a prudent budget, focusing on continuity.

Given the geopolitical uncertainties and challenges, it seems the government it seems has chosen to go a bit slow on fiscal consolidation,” IFA Global said in a research note. Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback’s strength against a basket of six currencies, was trading 0.09 per cent higher at 97.07.