India's forex kitty jumps USD 8.66 bn to record USD 725.72 bn

Mumbai, Feb 20 (PTI) India's forex reserves jumped USD 8.663 billion to hit a new all-time high of USD 725.727 billion in the week ended February 13, the RBI said on Friday.

The overall forex reserves dropped USD 6.711 billion to USD 717.064 billion in the previous reporting week ended February 6. The previous all-time high of USD 723.774 billion was touched in January.

For the week ended February 13, foreign currency assets, a major component of the reserves, increased by USD 3.55 billion to USD 573.603 billion, the data released by the central bank showed.

Expressed in dollar terms, the foreign currency assets include the effects of appreciation or depreciation of non-US units, such as the euro, pound, and yen, held in the foreign exchange reserves.

Value of the gold reserves surged by USD 4.99 billion to USD 128.466 billion during the week, the RBI said.

The Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) were up by USD 103 million to USD 18.924 billion, the apex bank added.

India's reserve position with the IMF was also up by USD 19 million to USD 4.734 billion in the reporting week, according to data. PTI AA BAL BAL