India's Forex Reserves Fall To $690 Billion, Biggest Weekly Drop Since April 2022
The month of October so far has seen Rs 78,190 crore make its way out of Indian bonds and equities.
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India's foreign exchange reserves declined to $690 billion for the week ended Oct. 11, according to data from the Reserve Bank of India on Friday. The forex reserves posted the biggest weekly fall since the week ended April 1, 2022.
The country's forex kitty fell by $10.75 billion over the previous reporting week.
In the previous reporting week, the reserves had dropped by $3.71 billion to $701.18 billion. In the last week of Sept. 27, India's forex reserves reached a record high of $704.89 billion for the sixth consecutive session.
Foreign investors have pumped in Rs 1.79 lakh crore into the country's debt and equity markets so far this year, according to data from the National Securities Depository Ltd.
The month of October so far has seen Rs 78,190 crore make its way out of Indian bonds and equities.
The rupee closed weaker against the US dollar on Friday. The domestic currency closed at a record low of 84.0737 after hitting an all-time low at Rs 84.09 intraday, according to Bloomberg. The Indian unit had closed at 84.07 against the greenback on Thursday.
For the week ended Oct. 11, foreign currency assets—a major component of the reserves—fell to $602.1 billion, according to the RBI data.
In dollar terms, foreign currency assets include the effect of the appreciation or depreciation of non-US units like the euro, pound, and yen held in foreign exchange reserves.
Gold reserves decreased to $65.658 billion during the week.
Gold prices on Friday increased Rs 389 to Rs 77,496 per 10 grams in futures trade, according to Bloomberg on Friday. There have been multiple triggers for both international and domestic gold prices to be pushed to record highs.
During the day, gold futures hit an all-time high of Rs 77,667 per 10 grams. The major trigger is the uncertainty around the US elections as well as the war in west Asia.
The special drawing rights were down by $86 million to $18.339 billion, the apex bank said.
India's reserve position with the International Monetary Fund was down by $20 million to $4.333 billion in the reporting week, the apex bank data showed.
India remains the fourth-highest foreign exchange reserve holder in the world. The reserves are equivalent to around 11 months of imports projected for the current financial year and about 99% of total external debt outstanding at the end of March, the central bank said in its July bulletin.
