India’s forex reserves jump for third straight week to hit over four-month high of $658.8 billion

India's foreign exchange (forex) reserves rose for a third consecutive week by $4.529 billion to hit a more-than-four-month high of $658.80 billion in the week ended March 21. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data showed on Friday, March 28, the country's forex reserves rose by a total of $15.6 billion in the prior two weeks.

In the previous reporting week, the overall reserves had risen by $305 million to $654.271 billion. This is the third straight week of rise in the kitty, which has been on a declining trend recently due to revaluation, along with forex market interventions by the RBI to help reduce volatilities in the rupee. The forex reserves had increased to an all-time high of $704.885 billion in September 2024.

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India's forex reserves: Key metrics

For the week ended March 21, foreign currency assets (FCA), a major component of the reserves, increased by $1.669 billion to $558.856 billion. Expressed in dollar terms, the foreign currency assets, include the effect of appreciation or depreciation of non-US units like the euro, pound and yen held in the forex reserves and the RBI's intervention in the forex market

Gold reserves increased by $2.883 billion to $77.275 billion during the week, said the RBI. The Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) were down by $22 million to $18.24 billion. Forex reserves include India's reserve tranche position at the International Monetary Fund (IMF). India's reserve position with the IMF was also down by $2 million at $4.429 billion in the reporting week.

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INR vs USD Rate

In the week to which the reserves data pertains, the rupee gained 1.2 per cent week-on-week, logging its best week in more than two years, on the back of inflows via foreign banks and amid traders unwinding speculative long-dollar positions. Equity inflows related to the rebalancing of the FTSE's All-World Index also may have helped the rupee, traders said. The rupee closed at 85.47 to the dollar on Friday, gaining 0.3 per cent for the day and 2.3 per cent in March.

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