Indian rupee strengthens past 94 per dollar on oil slide and foreign inflows

The Indian rupee strengthened past 94 per dollar on Friday, reaching its highest level since April, driven by renewed foreign inflows into Indian equities and a sharp fall in oil prices. The currency ended at 93.9050, gaining 1.1% for the week, its best performance in three weeks, after hitting an all-time low of 96.96 in May. Foreign investors bought nearly $3 billion in Indian equities this week, including the largest single-day purchase in six years, while Brent crude dropped nearly 20% on expectations of a halt to the Iran war. Analysts suggest India's broad-based equity market may attract global investors diversifying away from AI-heavy markets, with J.P. Morgan, Goldman Sachs, and BlackRock highlighting its appeal. The Reserve Bank of India recently announced measures to support the rupee, including a special window providing dollars to government-owned oil importers.