India’s forex reserves jump by $6.3 billion; hit 9-month high

India’s foreign exchange (forex) reserves rose by $6.30 billion to hit a nine-month high of $584.75 billion for the week ended April 7 on the back surge in the value of gold reserves and foreign currency assets, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data showed.

The value of gold reserves soared by $1.49 billion to $46.69 billion during the week under review. This is due to the sharp increase in gold price.

The foreign currency assets, the biggest component of the forex reserves, surged by $4.74 billion to $514.43 billion during the week ended April 7, as per the weekly statistical supplement released by the RBI on Friday.

Read | India’s forex reserves dip by $28 billion in FY 2022-23

Expressed in the US dollar terms, the foreign currency assets include the effect of
appreciation or depreciation of non-US currencies like pound, euro and yen held in the
forex reserves.

India’s forex kitty has witnessed an increase in three out of the past four weeks under review. Snapping two consecutive weeks of gain, the forex reserves had dropped by $329 million in the week ended April 1.

There has been volatility in forex reserves in the recent months. The forex reserves had depleted by $28.03 billion during the financial year 2022-23.

India’s forex reserves touched the record high of $642.45 billion on 3 September 2021. As on 31st March 2023, the end of the fiscal 2022-23, the country’s forex kitty was down by $64.01 billion when compared with its record high.