India's forex reserves fall nearly $1.8 billion to $596 billion

India's forex reserves declined by $1.8 billion to $596 billion for the week that ended on May 6 on the back of a fall in the core currency assets, according to Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data released on Friday. In the previous reporting week, the overall reserves had declined by $2.7 billion to $598 billion, falling below the $600 billion mark.

At a time when the currency is under pressure due to heavy outflow by foreign investors, RBI is reportedly intervening across all markets to defend the currency. The foreign exchange reserves declined by $28 billion in the six months to March 2022. During the reporting week, the fall in the reserves was on account of a decline in the Foreign Currency Assets (FCA), a major component of the overall reserves, and gold reserves, as per RBI's weekly data.