India’s forex reserves jump $44.90 billion to record $785.71 billion

Mumbai, September 11 (IANS): India’s foreign exchange reserves surged by $44.90 billion to a record $785.71 billion in the week ended September 4, according to data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday.The sharp rise follows an increase of $11.47 billion in the previous week, taking the reserves to $740.80 billion as of August 28.Foreign currency assets (FCA), the largest component of India’s forex reserves, drove the increase, rising by $47.498 billion during the week to $648.17 billion. FCA holdings were $95.886 billion higher than at the end of March and up $63.692 billion from the corresponding period a year earlier.Gold reserves, however, declined by $2.594 billion during the week to $113.816 billion. Despite the weekly fall, gold reserves remained $23.517 billion higher than a year ago, although they were $1.580 billion below their end-March level.India’s Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) fell marginally by $4 million during the week to $18.806 billion. SDR holdings were $184 million higher than at the end of March and $64 million above their year-ago level.The country’s reserve position with the IMF increased by $2 million during the week to $4.916 billion. It was also higher by $108 million from the end-March level and up $168 million compared with a year earlier.Overall, India’s foreign exchange reserves have risen by $94.599 billion since the end of March and are $87.438 billion higher than they were a year ago.The record level of reserves provides a substantial buffer for India against external shocks and helps strengthen the country’s capacity to manage volatility in global financial markets and the foreign exchange market.Meanwhile, in the week ended August 28, the central bank data showed that India's foreign exchange reserves rose by $11.475 billion to reach an all-time high of $740.803 billion.