The Reserve Bank of India sold a net of $7.7 billion in the spot foreign exchange market in August, data released on Monday showed, as the central bank looked to support the Indian rupee that fell 0.68% in the month.
The RBI said in its monthly bulletin that it did not purchase any dollars and sold $7.7 billion. In July, the central bank had sold a net of $2.54 billion in the spot market.
The Indian rupee fell 0.68% in August to 88.1950 against the U.S. dollar, breaching the 88-per-dollar mark for the first time.
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The RBI’s net outstanding forward sales stood at $53.36 billion as of end-August, compared with a net sale of $57.85 billion at the end of the previous month, the data showed.
The central bank intervenes in the spot and forward markets to curb exchange rate volatility.
On Monday, the Indian rupee settled slightly higher versus the U.S. dollar at 87.9275, with the RBI likely back in the market through state-run banks, reinforcing support for the currency near the 88 per dollar level.
American Dollar Exchange Rate