India's forex reserves surge by $14B to $700B
What's the story
India's foreign exchange reserves have witnessed a significant increase, rising by $14.17 billion to reach $701.36 billion in the week ending January 16, 2026, as per data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). The previous week's reserves were at $687.19 billion. The latest figures show a major jump in India's forex reserves after a modest increase of just $392 million the week before.
Asset growth
Foreign currency assets and gold reserves contribute to increase
The rise in forex reserves is mainly due to a jump in foreign currency assets, which are the largest component of these reserves. These assets increased by $9.65 billion to $560.52 billion during the week ending January 16. Gold reserves also contributed significantly to this increase, rising by $4.62 billion to $117.45 billion during the same period, according to RBI data.
Reserve adjustments
SDRs and IMF position witness slight decline
Despite the overall increase in forex reserves, Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) saw a slight dip of $35 million to $18.70 billion. India's reserve position with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) also declined by $73 million during the reporting week, standing at $4.684 billion as of January 16. These figures were also released by RBI data.