India’s forex reserves hit record $729.3 billion on strong foreign inflowsInstagram
India’s foreign exchange reserves fell by $14.9 billion to $765.9 billion in the week ended September 18, marking the sharpest weekly decline since November 2024, according to data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
The country’s forex reserves stood at $780.8 billion in the previous week ended September 11. The latest decline was largely driven by a fall in foreign currency assets (FCAs), the largest component of India’s reserves. FCAs declined by $14.8 billion to $631 billion during the week.
Foreign currency assets are valued in US dollar terms and also reflect changes in the value of major currencies such as the euro, pound and yen held as part of India’s reserves.
Gold reserves, however, increased marginally by $68 million to $111.3 billion. Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) declined by $106 million to $18.7 billion, while India’s reserve position with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) fell by $27 million to around $4.9 billion.
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The latest fall comes after India’s forex reserves touched a record high of about $785.7 billion in the week ended September 5, supported by foreign currency inflows through the RBI’s FCNR(B) deposit swap scheme.
The decline also comes amid pressure on the rupee from higher crude oil prices and elevated US Treasury yields. The RBI has been intervening in the foreign exchange market through spot and forward transactions to manage excessive volatility in the rupee.
Despite the sharp weekly decline, India’s forex reserves remain substantially higher than earlier in the year. According to the latest data, reserves are still around $74.8 billion higher than their level at the end of March 2026 and $63.3 billion above the year-ago level.