MUMBAI: Despite the rupee weakness, the foreign exchange reserves, which have been falling in the past three successive weeks, surged by $5.543 billion to $692.576 billion in the week to November 14, driven by a significant increase in the value of the gold holdings which stands out a tad over 890 tonne, show the latest data from the Reserve Bank.
According to the weekly statistical supplement released Friday, the value of gold reserves rose by $5.327 billion, as the prices of the yellow metal began to rise again following the massive fall in the previous weeks. Mid-October the international gold prices reached nearly 4,400 an ounce but since then fell below $3950/oz and has since then resumed its rally. Friday, the CME prices were down $5/oz at $4050 this evening.
Foreign currency assets, which form the largest chunk of the reserves, however rose only modestly as dollar was gaining strength of late.
In the previous reporting week, the reserves had fallen by $2.699 billion to $687.034 billion.
In the last week of October too, rise in gold reserves to the tune of $6.5 billion had pushed up the overall reserves to $702.5 billion, closer to the all-time record of $704.8 billion attained in the week to September 27, 2024.
Foreign currency assets, the largest component of the reserves, saw a modest rise of $152 million, bringing the total to $562.29 billion.
The FCA reflects the movements in major international currencies such as the euro, pound, and yen, held as part of the overall reserves. Appreciation or depreciation in these currencies against the dollar can influence the reported value.
The other two smaller components of the reserves also saw slight gains with the special drawing rights (SDRs) rising by $ 56 million to $ 18.65 billion and the reserve position with the IMF rising by $8 million to $4.779 billion, the central bank said.