India's forex reserves dip by $4.85 bn; hit lowest since July 2020

MUMBAI: India's foreign exchange (forex) reserves slumped by $4.854 billion to $532.664 billion for the week ended September 30, the lowest level since July 2020, as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) used its kitty to defend the rupee, which has hit record lows.

This is the lowest level of India's forex reserves since July 24, 2020.

The forex reserves had slumped by $8.134 billion during the week ended September 23, 2022, the previous reporting week.

As per the Reserve Bank of India's weekly statistical supplement, foreign currency assets, which are the biggest component of the forex reserves, dipped by $4.406 billion to $472.807 billion during the week ended September 30.

Expressed in US dollar terms, the foreign currency assets include the effect of appreciation or depreciation of non-dollar currencies like Euro, UK's Pound Sterling and Japanese Yen held in the foreign exchange reserves.

The value of gold reserves dropped by $281 million to $37.605 billion during the week ended September 30.

The value of India's Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) with the International Monetary Fund declined by $167 million to $17.427 billion during the week under review, the RBI data showed.

However, India's reserve position in the International Monetary Fund (IMF) remained unchanged at $4.826 billion during the week ended September 30, as per the RBI Weekly Statistical Supplement.