India's forex reserves rise for seventh straight week, jump $2.9 bn to hit all-time high of $648 bn

India's foreign exchange reserves surged by $2.98 billion to achieve a new milestone, reaching $648.562 billion in the week ending April 5, as announced by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday.

This growth follows a previous increase of $2.951 billion in the forex reserves, elevating it to $645.583 billion in the preceding week, marking another record high.

In September 2021, India's forex reserves peaked at $642.453 billion, a threshold surpassed in March of the current year. While the reserves faced depletion due to the central bank's intervention to stabilize the rupee amidst global pressures, there has been a consistent accumulation in recent months.

For the week ending April 5, the data released by the RBI showed that foreign currency assets, a significant constituent of the reserves, rose by $549 million to $571.166 billion. These assets are calculated in terms of their value in US dollars, incorporating the fluctuations in the valuation of non-US currencies such as the euro, pound, and yen held within the reserves.

Additionally, gold reserves surged by $2.398 billion to $54.558 billion during the same week, according to the RBI. The Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) also experienced an uptick, increasing by $24 million to $18.17 billion.

Furthermore, India's reserve position with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) saw a rise of $9 million to reach $4.669 billion during the reported week, as per the apex bank's data.