Economy on firm footing, rupee doing fine compared to Asian peers: FM Nirmala Sitharaman

New Delhi: Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday said the rupee is "doing fine" when compared with the relative performance of other emerging market currencies against the dollar and that India's economic fundamentals remain strong amid the West Asia war.

"India's economy is strong, our fiscal situation is strong, and the entire world is praising our fiscal deficit management. Our foreign exchange reserves remain solid," Sitharaman said in response to a supplementary question raised by Samajwadi Party leader Dharmendra Yadav in the Lok Sabha.

"Compared with other emerging economies, the rupee is doing fine...absolutely doing fine," she added.


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Separately, in a written reply, the minister said the rupee has depreciated by 4.1% until March 27 since the conflict began on February 28. "However, this depreciation is not specific to the rupee, as during this period, major Asian currencies have also depreciated," she said.

For instance, the South Korean won, Thai baht and Philippine peso have weakened against the dollar by 4.6%, 5.5% and 4.8%, respectively, she added.

The rupee touched 94.83 against the dollar on Monday.

Sitharaman also noted that price pressure in India has eased, with the average retail inflation moderating to 1.9% in the first 11 months of this fiscal, from 4.6% in the whole of 2024-25 and 6.2% in 2020-21.

"The value of the rupee is market-determined, with no target or specific level or band. The RBI regularly monitors the foreign exchange market and intervenes in situations of excess volatility," she said.