India's Foregin Exchange (FOREX) reserves dropped by USD 8.319 billion to USD 566.948 billion for the week ended February 10, the Reserve bank of India said on Friday.

This is the second consecutive week of drop in the reserves after the USD 1.49-billion decrease in the previous reporting week. It can be noted that in October 2021, the country's forex kitty had reached an all-time high of USD 645 billion. The reserves have been declining as the central bank deploys the kitty to defend the rupee amid pressures caused majorly by global developments.

Meanwhile, RBI net bought USD 3.84 bln in the foreign exchange market in December, compared with  USD 4.36 bln in November, data on the central bank's website showed. On a gross basis, the central bank bought USD 12.82 billioinin December against USD 22.28 bln the previous month and sold about USD 8.98 bln in December, compared with USD 17.92 bln in November. At the end of December, the Reserve bank of India had net long outstanding forward foreign exchange positions of $10.97 bln, compared with $8.49 bln a month ago. 

In the week ended February 10, the Indian rupee lost 0.8 percent to close at 82.51 per dollar as US jobs data sparked worries of the Federal Reserve raising interest rates for longer than was earlier anticipated.

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FOREX reserves rise for 3rd consecutive week, hits 6-month high