Forex reserves jump USD 5.9 billion to USD 595 billion

India's forex kitty jumped USD 5.929 billion to USD 595.067 billion for the week ended June 2, the Reserve Bank said on Friday. The reserves had dropped for two consecutive weeks and declined by USD 4.34 billion to USD 589.14 billion in the previous reporting week. It can be noted that in October 2021, the country's forex kitty had reached an all-time high of USD 645 billion. The reserves have been declining as the central bank deploys the kitty to defend the rupee amid pressures caused majorly by global developments.

For the week ended June 2, the foreign currency assets, a major component of the reserves, increased by USD 5.27 billion to USD 526.201 billion, according to the Weekly Statistical Supplement released by the RBI on Friday. 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 foreign exchange reserves.

The RBI said that gold reserves jumped by USD 655 million to USD 45.557 billion. The apex bank said that the Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) were down by USD 6 million to USD 18.186 billion. The central bank data showed that the country's reserve position with the IMF was up USD 10 million to USD 5.123 billion in the reporting week.

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