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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. 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 billio
The ongoing West Asia conflict has highlighted India's structural vulnerability to energy shocks, reinforcing the need to reduce dependence on imported crude and accelerate efforts to strengthen energy security, according to an external member of the RBI's rate-setting panel. Nagesh Kumar, who is the director of the Institute for Studies in Industrial Development and also a part of the Monetary Policy Committee, said the Indian approach needs to focus both on stepping up oil exploration domestically and hastening the transition to alternative sources. "The high dependence on imported crude makes the Indian economy highly vulnerable to volatility in the hydrocarbons market. While India's macroeconomic fundamentals remain resilient, and the Indian economy will continue to remain the fastest growing major economy with a growth rate of nearly 7 per cent in 2026-27, it is time to prioritise energy security and resilience for sustaining the accelerating economic growth trajectory," Kumar .
India could consider lowering the inflation target and trimming the tolerance band if GDP growth remains robust with a more stable inflation over the next five years, RBI Deputy Governor Poonam Gupta said on Tuesday. However, if the global environment remains as challenging as it has been during the past six years, it would warrant both predictability and flexibility inherent in the existing framework, she said. The government, after consultation with the RBI, has notified the inflation target framework for a five year period through March 31, 2031. As per the framework, the Reserve Bank has to keep inflation at 4 per cent (+/-2 per cent) from FY27-FY31. Speaking at an NCAER seminar, Gupta said the future of the inflation targeting framework in India would depend on the combination of inflation and growth outcomes as they evolve during the next five years. Also, the future inflation targeting framework would have to take into account the global shocks that the economy may have to