Mumbai The Reserve Bank of India has taken a major step to keep its foreign exchange reserves stable and support the rupee. According to a recent report by Bloomberg Economics, the RBI has sold gold worth about $12 billion, or about Rs 1.14 lakh crore, within the two weeks ending May 22. This assessment in the report has been made on the basis of in-depth analysis of publicly available data. However, there is no official comment from RBI on this matter yet.
Purchasing of foreign currency assets also took place
The report also revealed that during the same period in which gold was sold, the RBI also purchased foreign currency assets worth $7.5 billion. Experts believe that this exercise is part of a planned strategy of diversification and management of foreign exchange reserves. By the end of March 2026, RBI had a total of 880.52 metric tonnes of gold, of which 77 percent was kept safe in the country’s domestic vaults.
Strait of Hormuz crisis became the reason
It is believed that the global situation is a major reason behind this strategic sale. The world’s oil supply has been affected due to the ongoing disruption in the Hormuz waterway. India, which is the world’s third largest crude oil importer, has to spend more foreign exchange for oil. This unexpected expenditure had put pressure on both the rupee exchange rate and overall foreign exchange reserves. In such a situation, experts are considering this sale of gold as a deliberate step to strengthen the reserves and maintain liquidity in the market.
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