Annual bands of a Porites coral from the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, eastern Indian Ocean, were analysed by radiocarbon for 1955--1985 AD. A rapid oceanic response of the site to bomb 14C is found, with a maximum Δ14C value of 132? in 1975. This value is considerably higher than those for the northwestern Indian Ocean, suggesting that surface waters reaching Cocos are not derived from the Arabian Sea. Instead, Δ14C values for Cocos and those for Watamu (Kenya) agree well over most of the study interval, suggesting that the South Equatorial Current carries 14C-elevated water rather than 14C-depleted water westward across the Indian Ocean. This implies that oceanic upwelling in the northwestern Indian Ocean is spatially confined with little contribution to the upper limb of the global thermohaline circulation.