RBI’s Net Dollar Short Position Widens Sharply to 16% of Dollar Holdings; Fire in Oil Tanker Near Oman With 24 Indians on Board; Instead of Dealing with the Pakistan Problem, Modi’s Policy Ignores it
India Under Modi Skips In-person Pre-COP31 Climate Talks; Residents Protest Renaming of Rajasthan’s Islampur as Shri Rampur; Penguin not to Distribute Joe Sacco’s Book on Muzaffarnagar Riots in India
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Snapshot of the day
June 8, 2026
Sidharth Bhatia
India’s economic situation is increasingly being shaped by a mix of external shocks and domestic policy choices that are landing the hardest on ordinary citizens. The Reserve Bank of India’s net short dollar position has widened sharply to around $110–115 billion – about 16% of its dollar holdings – up from $95.3 billion just weeks earlier. The rupee itself slid 0.8% in a single session, marking its steepest fall in four weeks and closing at 95.7075 per dollar.
“Amid shift of global capital towards artificial intelligence (AI)-linked developments and a weak rupee, foreign investors pulled out over Rs 43,000 crore in the first week of June. Notably, National Securities Depository Ltd data has revealed that with this, total outflows by Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) from Indian equities have reached Rs 2.67 lakh crore so far in 2026, surpassing the Rs 1.66 lakh crore withdrawn during the entire financial year of 2025,” reports Deccan Herald.
Iran and Israel attacked each other today for the first time since the April ceasefire halted the fighting triggered by the joint US-Israeli strikes early this year. Tehran said it hit Israel in retaliation against the latter’s offensive in Beirut on Sunday. The Iranian-backed Houthis, who have mostly stayed out of the conflict, also launched missiles at Israel, and with US-Iran talks not making any substantial progress, the episode threatened to reignite a full-scale war. Tel Aviv and Tehran have reportedly agreed to stop firing. New Delhi has said it “deeply regrets the renewed attacks”.
In other news an oil tanker with 24 Indian crew reported a fire on board today when it was off Oman’s coast; the sailors are safe and it is not clear yet what caused the blaze aboard the vessel that was not carrying cargo at the time of the incident.
In more news that is capable of drawing the ire of the person on the streets,
