RBI: India's Forex Reserves Increase $963 Million To $672.59 Billion, Gold Reserves Jump

India’s foreign exchange reserves rose by $963 million to $672.587 billion for the week ended June 19, according to data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday. The increase comes after the country’s forex reserves had declined sharply by $9.985 billion in the previous reporting week to $671.625 billion.

Foreign currency assets (FCAs), the largest component of the reserves, fell by $3.072 billion to $541.217 billion during the latest reporting week. FCAs are expressed in US dollar terms and reflect the impact of movements in major global currencies such as the euro, pound sterling and Japanese yen against the US dollar.

The decline in foreign currency assets was more than offset by a sharp rise in the value of gold reserves, which

increased by $4.110 billion to $107.930 billion.

Meanwhile, Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) declined by $52 million to $18.647 billion. India’s reserve position with the IMF also edged lower by $22 million to $4.793 billion during the week.

The latest data comes at a time when overseas investor interest in Indian debt has strengthened significantly. Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have invested a record nearly Rs 40,000 crore in Indian government securities so far in June, aided by recent policy initiatives announced by the RBI and the government to improve the attractiveness of the domestic bond market for global investors.

According to data cited by The Economic Times, FPIs purchased Rs 39,640 crore worth of government bonds during the month, surpassing the previous monthly record of Rs 22,005 crore set in August 2024. The sustained inflows into government securities are expected to support India’s external position and provide additional stability to the country’s foreign exchange reserves.