India's forex reserves surge $1.51B to $658B, reversing previous declines
India's foreign exchange (forex) reserves surged by a whopping $1.51 billion to $658.091 billion for the week ending November 29, data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) showed. The rise comes after a streak of weekly declines, with the total reserves having dropped by $1.31 billion to $656.582 billion in the previous reporting week, and witnessing a record fall of $17.761 billion in the week before it.
Forex reserves reached a record high in September
In late September, India's forex reserves had hit an all-time high of $704.885 billion. However, the following weeks witnessed a declining trend. The latest increase in reserves is mainly due to an increase in foreign currency assets (FCAs), which form the largest chunk of the reserves. FCAs increased by $2.061 billion to $568.852 billion for the week ending November 29, according to RBI.
FCAs and gold reserves: A mixed picture
FCAs are denominated in US Dollar terms and take into account the impact of appreciation or depreciation of non-US units such as the Euro, Pound, and Yen held in the forex reserves. Gold reserves, meanwhile, witnessed a decline during the week. The RBI said that gold reserves fell by $595 million to $66.979 billion during the week ending November 29.
SDRs and IMF reserve position show slight increase
The Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) increased marginally by $22 million to $18.007 billion for the week ending November 29. India's reserve position with the IMF also increased marginally by $22 million to $4.254 billion during the same reporting week, according to RBI data.
