The US Federal Reserve’s return to interest rate hikes is turning up the pressure on India, pushing the rupee past 96 against the dollar and adding a fresh complication to the Reserve Bank of India’s upcoming policy decision as economists increasingly debate not whether rates need to rise, but when.
The rupee breached the 96-per-dollar mark on Thursday, trading around 96.03 after closing at 95.95 in the previous session, as the Fed’s first rate increase since 2023 strengthened the dollar and signalled that more tightening could follow.
