According to RBI data released on Friday, the country’s foreign exchange reserves fell by USD 5.008 billion to USD 588.314 billion in the week ended July 1.
The reserves increased by USD 2.734 billion to USD 593.323 billion in the previous week ended June 24.
The drop in foreign exchange reserves during the reporting week ended July 1 was due to a drop in Foreign Currency Assets (FCA), a major component of overall reserves, as well as in gold reserves.
FCA fell by USD 4.471 billion to USD 524.745 billion in the week ended July 1, according to the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) Weekly Statistical Supplement released on Friday.
FCA is expressed in dollars and includes the effect of non-US currency appreciation or depreciation in foreign exchange reserves such as the euro, pound, and yen.
In the reporting week, gold reserves fell by USD 504 million to USD 40.422 billion.
The Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) fell by USD 77 million to USD 18.133 billion in the reporting week ended July 1, according to the RBI.
The country’s reserve position with the IMF increased by USD 44 million in the reporting week to USD 5.014 billion, according to the data.
Earlier this week, the RBI announced a slew of measures to boost forex inflows and thus strengthen the rupee, which has been falling against the US dollar.
Source:FE