India’s forex reserves fall, stay close to record $704.9 billion:Gold reserves fall by $3.81 billion to $101.73 billion; RBI says reserves cover ’11 months of imports’

India’s foreign exchange reserves declined by USD 5.623 billion in the week ended October 31 to USD 689.733 billion, the Reserve Bank of India’s latest Weekly Statistical Supplement showed. The fall was driven by a drop in both foreign currency assets and gold reserves. Foreign currency assets, the largest component of reserves, fell by USD 1.957 billion to USD 564.591 billion. Gold reserves dropped by USD 3.810 billion to USD 101.726 billion. Despite this, the forex kitty remains close to its all-time high of USD 704.89 billion, reached in September 2024. The RBI noted that reserves are sufficient to cover over 11 months of merchandise imports, indicating resilience in India’s external sector. In 2023, India added USD 58 billion to its reserves after a decline of USD 71 billion in 2022. In 2024, reserves increased by a little over USD 20 billion, and so far in 2025, they have risen by about USD 40 billion. Foreign exchange reserves — assets held by the central bank in major currencies like the US dollar, euro, yen, and pound sterling — help stabilise the rupee. The RBI manages liquidity by buying dollars when the rupee strengthens and selling them when it weakens. Gold prices have surged in recent months amid global uncertainties and robust investment demand, contributing to valuation changes in India’s reserves.