Forex reserves down USD 8.13 bn to USD 537.51 billion

The country’s forex kitty continued its southward journey, with the overall reserves declining by USD 8.134 billion to USD 537.518 billion for the week ended September 23, RBI data showed on Friday. The reserves, which have been dipping as the central bank deploys the kitty to defend the rupee amid global volatility, had declined by over USD 5.2 billion to USD 545.54 billion in the previous reporting week.

The fall in the reserves for the week ended September 23 was on account of a dip in the foreign currency assets (FCA), a major component of the overall reserves, according to the Weekly Statistical Supplement released by the RBI.

The FCA decreased by USD 7.688 billion to USD 477.212 billion during the reporting week.

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 value of the gold reserves decreased by USD 300 million to USD 37.886 billion, the data showed.

The Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) dropped by USD 93 million to USD 17.594 billion. The country’s reserve position with the IMF was down by USD 54 million to USD 4.826 billion in the reporting week, as per the data.