Forex kitty drops by USD 7.79 bln to USD 690.693 bln

New Delhi: India's forex reserves dropped by USD 7.794 billion to USD 690.693 billion during the week ended May 1, the RBI said on Friday.

In the previous reporting week ended April 24, the overall reserves had declined by USD 4.82 billion to USD 698.487 billion.

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The kitty had expanded to an all-time high of USD 728.494 billion during the week ended February 27 this year before the beginning of the Middle East conflict, which led to several weeks of a drop as the rupee came under pressure and the RBI had to intervene in the forex market through dollar sales.

For the week ended May 1, foreign currency assets, a major component of the reserves, decreased by USD 2.797 billion to USD 551.825 billion, the central bank's data showed.

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

Value of gold reserves decreased by USD 5.021 billion to USD 115.216 billion during the week, the RBI said.

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The Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) were up USD 15 million to USD 18.789 billion, the apex bank said.

India's reserve position with the IMF was also up by USD 8 million to USD 4.863 billion at the end of the reporting week, according to the apex bank's data.

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