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Oman: With the Indian rupee holding steady around 23.5 against the UAE dirham, Indian expats are seizing the opportunity to send money back home in large volumes. The exchange rate, which began the week at around 23.34, has prompted a notable spike in remittances since Thursday, June 19.

Traditionally, June sees a dip in remittance volumes as many Indian expatriates allocate funds toward airline tickets and vacation-related expenses. However, this year, the attractive exchange rate appears to be outweighing seasonal spending priorities.

“Thursday was one of the busiest remittance days we’ve seen in weeks,” said a representative from a leading currency exchange house. “Even though the rupee briefly strengthened to 23.46, the dip wasn’t significant enough to slow down transfers.”

There is growing speculation that the rupee may return to 23.3–23.4 levels by the end of June. Many expats are not willing to wait, preferring to act now rather than risk less favorable rates later. “Wherever spare funds are available, people are choosing to remit immediately,” another exchange house official noted. “If the rate stays favorable — or drops further — in July, that’s an added bonus.”

Industry insiders expect high remittance activity to continue through the weekend and into early next week. However, they caution that relying on further rate improvements could be risky.

What’s Fueling the Rupee Sentiment?

Despite global geopolitical tensions, including the ongoing Israel-Iran conflict, the U.S. dollar has shown surprising weakness. Investors are increasingly turning to gold rather than the dollar as a safe-haven asset, which has contributed to the rupee’s resilience.

Looking ahead, several key factors could continue to support the rupee’s performance:

• FII inflows are expected to recover following the rollback of reciprocal tariffs by the U.S. and positive developments in global trade agreements.
• India’s rising defense production is boosting exports and reducing import dependency, which helps improve the trade and current account deficits.
• Economic optimism surrounding the India-UK and potentially US-India trade deals is lifting investor confidence.
• Easing inflation, now below the RBI’s 4% target, may give the central bank room to cut interest rates.
• RBI’s market interventions are actively containing excessive currency volatility.

For now, with the rupee at favorable levels and economic indicators leaning positive, UAE-based Indian expats are opting not to wait — and are remitting while the rate is right.