India's Foreign Exchange Reserves Remain Above $700 Billion

Data from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Friday showed that India's Forex reserves stood above $700 billion for the second-consecutive week. The foreign reserves stood at $701.18 billion as of October 4, a drop of $3.71 billion from the previous week, according to the RBI's weekly bulletin. The country's Forex reserves of over $700 billion are at an all-time high and the fourth-largest in the world.

Forex rose almost $35 billion in the first seven weeks.

Foreign Currency Assets (FCAs) declined to $612.6 billion as against a weekly gain of $3.51 billion in the Weekly Statistical Supplement issued by the RBI.

The gold reserves declined by $40 million at $65.76 billion.
Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) also declined by $123 million at $18.43 billion.

Reserve position in the International Monetary Fund (IMF) dipped marginally by $71 million to $4.3 billion

Though geo-political uncertainties still hung in balance, investors' confidence in India's growth story was intact as in the last week, country's foreign exchange reserves crossed $ 700 billion for the first time at $ 704.89 billion

Forex surged by $ 12.59 billion-a practice that has been witnessed since mid-July 2023-for the largest weekly rise.

The country has now become the fourth member of the elite league, having over $700 billion in reserves after China, Japan, and Switzerland.
Foreign inflows into the country this year have crossed $30 billion.
India's Forex reserves are expected to rise in the coming years as well. Strong Forex would further improve India's prospects for economic growth as it would help the country gain a better international position, attract foreign investment, and enhance domestic trade and industry.

These, according to industry experts, are creating confidence among trade and industry and drawing in foreign investments amid geopolitical vulnerabilities, especially an unmatched Forex bolstered by a strong monetary policy stance.