Forex kitty down $1.14 billion to $359 billion

Mumbai: A huge fall in gold reserves led to a USD 1.14 billion dip in the country's forex reserves to USD 359.155 billion for the week ended January 7, the Reserve Bank said on Friday.

Total reserves had risen by USD 625.5 million to USD USD 360.296 billion in the previous reporting week.

After remaining unchanged for several weeks, the gold reserves dipped by USD 1.398 billion to USD 18.584 billion at the end of the reporting week, the central bank said.

Foreign currency assets (FCAs), the biggest component of the overall reserves, increased by USD 241.8 million to USD 336.824 billion in the reporting week.

FCAs, expressed in US dollar terms, include the effects of appreciation/depreciation of non-US currencies, such as the euro, pound and the yen held in the reserves.

The overall forex reserves had touched a life-time high of USD 371.99 billion in the week to September 30, 2016.

The special drawing rights with the International Monetary Fund rose by USD 5.7 million to USD 1.438 billion, while India's reserve position with the IMF, too, increased by USD 9.4 million to USD 2.308 billion, RBI said.