News about foreign reserves

The rupee gained 9 paise to 94.80 against the dollar in early trade, extending its recovery to a third straight session after closing at 94.89 on Friday. Traders said it was the sharpest rally in seven months, but high crude prices, rising U.S. Treasury yields and steady foreign outflows have kept pressure on, prompting the RBI to step up interventions. Brent fell 1.88% to $107.79 per barrel after surging to $110, amid attacks on vessels near the Strait of Hormuz and threats to Saudi energy infrastructure. The Sensex dropped 470.50 points to 74,318, while foreign institutional investors bought a net Rs 1,165.92 crore of equities on Friday. India's forex reserves fell $8.578 billion to $726.027 billion in the week ended October 9, after a $12.952 billion decline the previous week.

The rupee gained 9 paise to 94.80 against the US dollar in early trade on Monday, supported by the Reserve Bank of India's structural forex interventions, with forex traders calling it the sharpest rally in seven months. The biggest threat is Brent crude, which has surged near USD 110 a barrel and was trading at USD 107.79 after a 1.88 per cent drop amid attacks on commercial vessels near the Strait of Hormuz. High crude prices, rising US Treasury yields and steady foreign capital outflows have pushed the RBI to step up intervention. Domestically, the Sensex fell 470.50 points to 74,318 and the Nifty dropped 147.10 points to 22,999.05, while FIIs bought equities worth Rs 1,165.92 crore on Friday. India's forex reserves fell USD 8.578 billion to USD 726.027 billion in the week ended October 9.

In an interview with Beijing Review, Zong Liang, a senior researcher at the World Finance Forum, argues that the renminbi is not deliberately undervalued. He notes that the currency weakened until early April 2025 before recovering, and broke through 6.9 per dollar in February 2026, its highest level since April 2023. The PBOC says the RMB appreciated about 9% against the U.S. dollar since the start of 2025, yet three effective exchange rate indices edged lower because the dollar index fell 9.4%. Forex reserves reached $3.3579 trillion by late 2025, up 5%, mainly due to valuation effects rather than large-scale purchases. He adds that the record current account surplus reflects the gap between domestic saving and investment, not the exchange rate alone.

The Dutch central bank (DNB) moved more than 78 tons of gold from New York and seven tons from Canada to London, citing rising geopolitical unrest and the need to improve crisis preparedness. This is part of a wider trend: the New York Fed, which custodies gold for the U.S. government and foreign institutions, now holds about half its early-1970s peak, and France removed all its gold from New York between July 2025 and January 2026. Earlier moves included Germany's transfers of 930 tons in 2000 and 674 tons in 2013–2017, Venezuela's 160 tons in 2011–2012, and India's accelerated relocations since 2023. According to World Gold Council analyst Krishan Gopaul, central banks now weigh custody risk, physical accessibility and market liquidity, and recent moves show the answer does not necessarily lie in domestic storage alone.

The article argues that President Tinubu is building a lasting legacy by combining the strengths of earlier Nigerian leaders with democratic and economic reform. It cites his role in forming the coalition that became the APC, which achieved Nigeria's first federal transfer of power from a governing party to an opposition party, and the Supreme Court's affirmation of the 2023 election result despite legal challenges. It also notes that he congratulated Governor Ademola Adeleke after the opposition Accord Party defeated the APC in Osun's August 2026 election, while acknowledging the controversy over the suspension of Rivers State's elected government. On the economy, the article credits the removal of petrol subsidies, unification of foreign-exchange windows and four 2025 tax laws, as real GDP growth rose from 3.38% in 2024 to 4.43% in Q2 2026. According to the IMF, gross reserves increased from about $40 billion to $46 billion during 2025.

Nigeria spent $1.19 billion on food imports in the first half of 2026, up $121.52 million or 11.41% from the same period of 2025, according to an analysis of the Central Bank of Nigeria's quarterly bulletin. Forex spending on food imports rose in most months, and in the second quarter it climbed 26.38% to $650 million, offsetting a 2.57% decline in the first quarter. Industry figures blame insecurity, which has forced farmers off their land, and low adoption of modern farming technology for weak local output. Emir of Kano Muhammadu Sanusi II warned that open import policies, including rice from Thailand, have weakened local rice mills and left banks with bad loans, and urged support for poor households that does not harm domestic farmers.