Forex reserves fall substantially

The country's foreign exchange reserves declined by USD 2.986 billion to reach USD 579.285 billion in the week ended March 26, RBI data showed on Friday. In the previous week ended March 19, the forex kitty had increased by USD 233 million to USD 582.271 billion. It had touched a record high of USD 590.185 billion in the week ended January 29, 2021.In the reporting week ended March 26, 2021, the fall in reserves was on account of a decrease in foreign currency assets (FCA), a major component of the overall reserves.FCA declined by USD 3.226 billion to USD 537.953 billion, as per weekly data by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

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 increased by USD 276 million to USD 34.907 billion in the reporting week, the RBI data showed. The special drawing rights (SDRs) with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) dipped by USD 9 million to USD 1.49 billion.The country's reserve position with the IMF declined by USD 27 million to USD 4.935 billion in the reporting week, according to the data.