India’s foreign exchange reserves fall weekly, while bank deposits and credit continue to grow year on year

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Highlights

India’s foreign exchange reserves stood at 6,833,505 crore rupees ($719,748 million) on 23 October 2026, down 12,655 crore rupees ($1,269 million) over the week.
As of 15 October 2026, total deposits at scheduled commercial banks stood at 27,875,910 crore rupees and bank credit at 22,742,777 crore rupees, with year-on-year increases of 3,992,695 crore rupees and 3,507,023 crore rupees, respectively.
The RBI recorded net absorption of 171,858 crore rupees through liquidity operations between 19 and 25 October 2026, indicating continued pressure to absorb surplus liquidity from the system.

This article was translated from the original. Read the original version by our correspondent here.

Weekly indicators for October 2026

According to the Reserve Bank of India, India’s total foreign exchange reserves stood at 6,833,505 crore rupees, or 719,748 million dollars, as of 23 October 2026, down 12,655 crore rupees, or 1,269 million dollars, from a week earlier. During this period, foreign currency assets increased by 12,419 crore rupees to 5,632,074 crore rupees, while gold reserves fell by 25,244 crore rupees to 979,339 crore rupees.

SDR holdings stood at 176,639 crore rupees and the reserve position with the IMF at 45,453 crore rupees. In the RBI’s liabilities and assets section, loans and advances to state governments were recorded at 21,074 crore rupees on 23 October 2026, down 8,626 crore rupees from the previous week.

Impact on the banking system and liquidity

As of 15 October 2026, total deposits at scheduled commercial banks stood at 27,875,910 crore rupees, down 519,169 crore rupees over the fortnight but up 3,992,695 crore rupees year on year. Bank credit stood at 22,742,777 crore rupees on the same date, down 252,075 crore rupees over the fortnight, while remaining 3,507,023 crore rupees higher year on year.

Broad money supply, M3, stood at 33,300,300 crore rupees as of 15 October 2026, up 16.0 percent year on year. The RBI’s liquidity operations between 19 October and 25 October 2026 showed net absorption, reaching 171,858 crore rupees on 25 October; this indicates continued pressure to absorb surplus liquidity from the system.

The data release also notes that banking data include the impact of the merger of a non-bank with a bank in 2023. Under the Banking Laws (Amendment) Act, 2025, the definition of a fortnight was revised from 15 December 2025, so that it now covers the 15th and the last calendar day of each month instead of alternate Fridays.

Our previous report discussed how some banks defer the recognition of bad loans through indirect evergreening, creating the appearance of repayment by routing funds through related parties. The article noted that such loans are more prone to default and that a rise in these patterns could weigh on bank stocks and increase risks to overall financial stability.

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