The best-performing major currency in October 2026 was the Norwegian krone, up 4.1% against a basket of 15 others. That is its biggest monthly gain since July 2023, and it took the krone to first place in the 12-month ranking. The worst was the Polish zloty, down 2.7%, its weakest month since September 2023.
After September's run of rate hikes, October was a month of pauses. The Federal Reserve, the European Central Bank and the Bank of Japan all held, and so did the central banks of New Zealand, Hungary, Poland and Russia. Oil did more of the moving. Brent crude rose 13.6% as the war with Iran threatened supply from the Gulf. Two energy exporters, Norway and Russia, took the top two places, and the euro had its worst month since April 2020.
The October 2026 ranking
Each figure is the currency's change against an equal-weighted basket of the other 15, from the reference rates of 30 September to those of 30 October, the last trading day of the month, taken from the FX Compass index. The last column covers the year so far, from 31 December 2025.
| Rank | Currency | October | 2026 so far |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Norwegian Krone (NOK) | +4.1% | +12.5% |
| 2 | Russian Ruble (RUB) | +3.1% | −0.2% |
| 3 | Swedish Krona (SEK) | +1.5% | −4.4% |
| 4 | Canadian Dollar (CAD) | +1.5% | +0.3% |
| 5 | Swiss Franc (CHF) | +1.4% | −1.6% |
| 6 | British Pound (GBP) | +0.7% | +1.9% |
| 7 | Australian Dollar (AUD) | +0.7% | +8.0% |
| 8 | US Dollar (USD) | −0.2% | +2.5% |
| 9 | New Zealand Dollar (NZD) | −0.3% | 0.0% |
| 10 | Japanese Yen (JPY) | −0.3% | +2.0% |
| 11 | Czech Koruna (CZK) | −1.5% | −3.4% |
| 12 | Danish Krone (DKK) | −1.8% | −3.0% |
| 13 | Euro (EUR) | −1.9% | −2.9% |
| 14 | Hungarian Forint (HUF) | −1.9% | +2.4% |
| 15 | Ukrainian Hryvnia (UAH) | −2.1% | −5.2% |
| 16 | Polish Zloty (PLN) | −2.7% | −7.2% |
Monthly figures compare two closing rates, so they hide what happened in between. The US dollar, for example, was up 0.9% on 7 October and still ended the month slightly lower. The dashboard shows the daily path for any period.
The krone had its best month since 2023
The krone rose in every week of October, and the gain built up steadily rather than in one jump: its best single day was +0.6%, on 5 October. Two things worked for it. Brent crude rose 13.6% over the month and finished above $110 a barrel, its highest in about six months, as the war with Iran threatened supply. On 29 October Yemen's Houthis claimed attacks on Saudi oil facilities, and on 30 October a tanker was attacked near the Strait of Hormuz. Norway is one of Europe's biggest oil and gas exporters.
The other was the interest rate. Norges Bank raised its policy rate to 4.50% in September and said it would likely keep it "elevated for a time", which leaves the krone with one of the highest yields in the basket. Against the euro it gained 5.7% in October. Over 12 months it is now the strongest of the 16, up 11.1%, ahead of the Australian dollar. Norges Bank decides again on 5 November.
Oil lifted the ruble and the Canadian dollar too
The Russian ruble gained 3.1%, its best month since May. Russia's currency tends to firm when oil prices rise, since most of its export revenue comes from oil and gas. The Bank of Russia kept its key rate at 14% on 23 October and raised its 2026 inflation forecast to 7.1% to 7.6%. After the decision the ruble rose to its strongest level against the dollar since early August, and it ended the month up 3.0% against the dollar.
The Canadian dollar gained 1.5%, its best month since March. On 28 October the Bank of Canada raised its rate to 2.50%, its first hike since July 2023, to stop high energy prices from spreading to other goods and services: petrol in Canada cost 27.8% more in September than a year earlier. Most of the Canadian dollar's gain came in the week before the decision, as oil climbed and markets priced in the hike.
The euro's worst month since 2020
The euro lost 1.9% against the basket, its weakest month since April 2020, and fell in every week of October. The Danish krone, pegged to it, lost 1.8%. Against the dollar the euro fell 1.6%, against the Norwegian krone 5.4%.
Several things hit it at once. The euro area imports most of its oil and gas, so dearer energy hurts its trade balance and lifts its inflation, which was already 3.8% in September. French ten-year government bond yields climbed close to 5%, their highest since 2002. On 2 October, during a sell-off in bond markets around the world, the euro had its worst day of the month. And on 29 October the ECB kept its deposit rate at 2.50%. Christine Lagarde said a hike had been discussed, and that she would step down in February, nine months before her term ends. Markets still expect a hike in December. Our piece on whether the euro is getting weaker has the 12-month picture.
The franc and the krona gained
The Swiss franc gained 1.4%, its first monthly gain since February and its best month since June 2025. Almost all of it came on 2 October, when the franc jumped 1.4% against the basket in one day. Government bond yields were climbing around the world, and investors who had borrowed cheap francs to buy higher-yielding currencies closed those carry trades. Against the euro the franc rose 3.1% over the month.
The Swedish krona gained 1.5%, its best month since January, most of it in the last week of October. It gained 3.2% against the euro. For 2026 as a whole it is still 14th of 16, down 4.4%.
The zloty, the hryvnia and the forint
The Polish zloty fell 2.7%, and 0.8% against the euro. The losses built up in the second half of the month: it was down 1.1% in mid-October and 2.7% by the end. Its worst day was 23 October (−0.7%), the day after Poland's central bank said its Monetary Policy Council could not fully operate without its governor, Adam Glapiński, who is in a long-running dispute with Donald Tusk's government and faces a possible referral to the State Tribunal. The council kept its rate at 3.75% in October, with inflation at 4.0% in September, above its target.
The Ukrainian hryvnia lost 2.1%. The National Bank of Ukraine's official rate passed 45.20 hryvnias per dollar for the first time on 26 October, a record low, and on 29 October the bank raised its key rate to 16.5%, its third hike in a row, citing a significant strengthening of price pressures. Ukrainian inflation was 10% in September.
The Hungarian forint lost 1.9%, its weakest month since July, even though the National Bank of Hungary kept its rate at 5.50% on 20 October. It was a bumpy month: the forint lost 1.0% on 2 October, the day the franc jumped, and won it back on 6 October. For 2026 so far it is still up 2.4%. The Czech koruna lost 1.5%, its second weak month in a row.
Australia and New Zealand split
On 28 October the Reserve Bank of New Zealand left its rate at 2.75% in a 4 to 3 vote, when markets had priced a hike as almost certain. The New Zealand dollar fell 1.5% against the basket that day, its worst of the month, and finished October down 0.3%. Against the Australian dollar it had its biggest one-day drop since 2017.
The Australian dollar gained 0.7%. It dropped 1.4% on 15 October after weak jobs data cut bets on another rate hike, then recovered after Deputy Governor Andrew Hauser said the inflation outlook was "significantly worse" than the Reserve Bank of Australia had forecast. The RBA, at 4.60%, decides again on 3 November.
The dollar, the pound and the yen
The US dollar ended October 0.2% lower against the basket, after its best month since June in September. It was up 0.9% on 7 October and drifted down from there. On 28 October the Fed held its target range at 3.75% to 4.00%; two of the twelve voters wanted another hike, and futures still put the odds of one in December at about 85%. Our dollar explainer has the longer view.
The British pound gained 0.7% and rose in each of the last three weeks of the month. The Japanese yen slipped 0.3% after its best month since 2024. On 30 October the Bank of Japan held at 1.25%, with one board member voting for a hike, and said underlying inflation had reached its 2% target, which analysts took as a sign that the next hike could come in December. More on that in why the yen has been so weak in 2026.
The year so far
The top of the 2026 table has spread out. The Norwegian krone (+12.5%) now leads the Australian dollar (+8.0%) by more than four points, after the two were less than one point apart at the end of September. The US dollar (+2.5%) and the Hungarian forint (+2.4%) follow a long way behind. At the bottom the Polish zloty (−7.2%) has slipped below the Ukrainian hryvnia (−5.2%) and the Swedish krona (−4.4%), which was last a month ago.
How these numbers are calculated: exchange rates come from the ECB's daily euro reference rates, with the hryvnia taken from the National Bank of Poland's tables and the ruble from the Bank of Russia. Each day, a currency's move is compared with each of the other 15 and averaged, so the result shows how it did against the whole group rather than against one partner. The figures are nominal, not adjusted for inflation. More detail in what a currency strength index is.