India's Forex Reserves Rise For Eight Week To $688 Billion
India ranks as the fourth-largest holder of foreign exchange reserves, sufficient to cover nearly a year of imports.
India's foreign exchange reserves rose for the eighth consecutive week to the highest level since early October to $688.1 billion for the period ended April 25, according to data from the Reserve Bank of India on Friday.
The country's forex kitty swelled by nearly $1.98 billion over the previous reporting week. The reserves added $9.3 billion in the week ended April 18.
India ranks as the fourth-largest holder of foreign exchange reserves, sufficient to cover nearly a year of imports. The country's forex holding is the fourth largest after China, Japan and Switzerland.
Reserves have steadily recovered after a steep fall from their peak of $700 billion at the end of September.
Besides, foreign investors have pulled out $10.5 billion from the country's debt and equity markets so far this year, according to data from the National Securities Depository Ltd.
The rupee has also seen high volatility during this period amid global trade tensions and a slowdown in the world's fifth-largest economy. The prospects of a US-India trade deal have helped the local currency shave off some initial losses.
For the week ended April 25, foreign currency assets—a major component of the reserves—rose to $580.6 billion, according to the RBI data. In dollar terms, foreign currency assets include the effect of the appreciation or depreciation of non-US units like the euro, pound, and yen held in foreign exchange reserves.
Gold reserves decreased by $207 million to $84.36 billion during the week.
