External assets held and controlled by the Reserve Bank of India that can be used to meet balance-of-payments needs, intervene in the currency market, and back confidence in the rupee.
- The four components are foreign currency assets (the largest share), gold, Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) with the IMF, and the Reserve Tranche Position (RTP) in the IMF.
- They are managed by the RBI, which publishes weekly reserve data; valuation changes (dollar movements, gold prices) shift the headline number.
- Reserves are often measured in months of imports they can cover (import cover), an indicator of external resilience; verify the latest level and import cover.
- They allow the RBI to defend the rupee by selling dollars and to absorb sudden capital outflows; they are part of the capital and reserves side of the BoP.
- India built large reserves after the 1991 crisis to avoid a repeat of a balance-of-payments squeeze; see concept current account deficit and concept special drawing rights.
The four components (foreign currency assets, gold, SDRs, RTP), the RBI as manager, and "import cover" as a measure are standard external-sector facts.
Foreign currency assets are only one component; the full reserves also include gold, SDRs, and the Reserve Tranche Position; SDRs are an IMF reserve asset, not an actual currency held in a vault.
RBI-held external assets: foreign currency assets, gold, SDRs, and Reserve Tranche Position; measured in months of import cover.