India's foreign exchange trading data shows the trend for the first week of May 2026

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Foreign Exchange Market Trends May 2026

Highlights

During 04-08 May 2026, inter-bank FCY/INR spot purchases were 17,922 million U.S. dollars, 23,669 million U.S. dollars, and then 18,019 million U.S. dollars.
Inter-bank FCY/FCY forward purchases remained consistently high from May 5 to 7, reaching 29,120 million, 26,747 million, and 31,080 million U.S. dollars, respectively.
RBI data shows that in the inter-bank segment, the total FCY/FCY transaction size is significantly larger than in the merchant segment, clearly indicating the dominant role of banks in the wholesale market.

This article was translated from the original. Read the original version by our correspondent here.

Details of transactions from May 4 to May 8

According to the Reserve Bank of India’s press release 2026-2027/480, the published data shows daily activity in the merchant and inter-bank segments of the foreign exchange market between May 4, 2026, and May 8, 2026. The data includes both purchases and sales in the spot, forward, swap, and forward cancellation categories under FCY/INR and FCY/FCY deals.

On the merchant purchase side, FCY/INR spot was 5,764 million U.S. dollars on May 4, 5,504 million U.S. dollars on May 7, and 4,694 million U.S. dollars on May 8. During the same period, inter-bank purchases in FCY/INR spot deals rose from 17,922 million U.S. dollars to 23,669 million U.S. dollars on May 7, and stood at 18,019 million U.S. dollars on May 8.

On the sales side, merchant FCY/INR spot deals were 6,046 million U.S. dollars on May 4, 6,450 million U.S. dollars on May 5, and 4,640 million U.S. dollars on May 8. Inter-bank FCY/INR spot sales increased from 17,282 million U.S. dollars on May 4 to 23,260 million U.S. dollars on May 7, and were 17,462 million U.S. dollars on May 8.

Market activity and sectoral significance

The published table also shows that the size of FCY/FCY forward and swap transactions in the inter-bank segment is significantly larger than in the merchant segment, highlighting the dominant role of banks in the wholesale foreign exchange market. Between May 5 and May 7, inter-bank FCY/FCY forward purchases were recorded at 29,120 million U.S. dollars, 26,747 million U.S. dollars, and 31,080 million U.S. dollars, indicating high activity during the week.

This provisional data is important for understanding the daily liquidity of India’s foreign exchange market, hedging demand, and the pace of transactions within the banking system. Corporate treasuries, dealing rooms, and market analysts use these figures to assess short-term trends between merchant flows and inter-bank positioning.

Our previous report discussed the weakness in USD/INR and the selling pressure around key technical levels of the pair, as well as the potential trading range of ₹93.78–₹94.73. It was also noted that despite policy measures to support the rupee—such as incentives for U.S. dollar deposits by non-resident Indians and foreign bond inflows—demand for the U.S. dollar and global uncertainty may continue to exert pressure in the near term.

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