The country’s foreign exchange reserves declined by a massive $ 6.24 billion to reach $ 583.945 billion in the week ended February 5, RBI data showed on Friday. In the previous week, the reserves had touched a record high of $ 590.185 billion after rising by $ 4.852 billion.
In the reporting week ended February 5, the decline in the forex kitty was mainly on account of a fall in foreign currency assets (FCAs), a major component of the overall reserves. FCAs decreased by $ 4.88 billion to $ 542.338 billion, weekly data from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) showed.
Expressed in dollar terms, the foreign currency assets include the effect of appreciation or depreciation of non-US units like the euro, pound and yen held in the foreign exchange reserves.
The gold reserves decreased by $ 1.327 billion to $ 34.967 billion in the reporting week. The special drawing rights (SDRs) with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) dipped by $ 6 million to $ 1.503 billion.
The country’s reserve position with the IMF also declined by $ 27 million to $ 5.138 billion in the reporting week, as per the data.