Indian rupee falls reaches nearly 12 percent since Marka-e-Haq as INR struggles against multiple regional currencies

The currency tables have turned in a way few predicted. The Indian rupee has lost nearly 12 percent of its value against the Pakistani rupee since Marka-e-Haq in May 2025. On May 15, 2025, one Indian rupee bought 3.2913 PKR. By May 18, 2026, that figure had dropped to 2.901 PKR. The Indian rupee PKR decline, therefore, stands at 11.86 percent over the period. Moreover, 6.8 percent of that depreciation occurred in 2026 alone.

The shift is notable for several reasons. Pakistan entered another IMF program last year — a move that typically signals economic stress. Yet despite that backdrop, the Pakistani rupee has held stronger ground against its Indian counterpart. Furthermore, both economies faced external headwinds during this period, including global inflation trends and economic shocks from the Gulf War. The PKR, however, came out ahead.

India’s currency troubles are not limited to Pakistan. The Indian rupee has also weakened against the Bangladeshi taka and other regional currencies. Therefore, the INR’s struggles appear broader than any single bilateral dynamic. Global factors such as US dollar strength and war-related economic pressure have played a role. Still, the consistent depreciation across multiple currency pairs suggests India’s economic challenges run deeper than external shocks alone.

For Pakistan, the comparison carries both symbolic and practical weight. Currency strength reflects investor confidence, trade balances, and macroeconomic stability. Therefore, outperforming the Indian rupee over a sustained period is not a trivial data point. It signals that Pakistan’s stabilisation efforts, however difficult, are producing measurable results.

The Indian rupee falls could remain under downward pressure for the foreseeable future. Finally, in the quiet arithmetic of currency markets, Pakistan appears to be winning a competition that neither country officially entered.