India Tops Global Remittances at $135B, Forex Reserves Hit $701 Billion

The share of remittances from advanced economies increased, reflecting a growing contribution from skilled and professional workers, said the Survey tabled by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Parliament.

A unified effort to reduce manufacturing costs is required for enhancing India's export competitiveness, the Survey noted.

Further, durable external resilience and stronger currency credibility can emerge from augmenting manufacturing export capacity, supported by a disciplined, productivity-oriented industrial policy, careful management of input costs across value chains, and the complementary growth of high-value services.

India has consistently attracted sizeable gross investment inflows, amounting to 18.5 per cent of GDP in FY25, even amid tightening global financial conditions.

According to UNCTAD data, India remained the largest recipient of gross FDI inflows in South Asia and surpassed major Asian peers such as Indonesia and Vietnam.

India ranked fourth globally in Greenfield investment announcements in 2024, with over 1,000 projects and emerged as the largest destination for Greenfield digital investments between 2020-24, attracting $114 billion.

In April-November 2025, gross FDI inflows strengthened to $64.7 billion, compared with $55.8 billion in April-November 2024.

"India's FPI pattern shows recurring cycles of inflows and outflows, with significant shifts often linked to global financial changes. The data indicate volatility, with six months of net outflows and three months of net inflows, resulting in a modest net balance for the year-to-date," the Survey noted.

Moreover, India's foreign exchange reserves increased to $701.4 billion (as of January 16), up from $668 billion (as of March end).

In terms of adequacy, the reserves are sufficient to cover around 11 months of goods imports and about 94 per cent of the external debt outstanding at the end of September 2025, providing a comfortable liquidity buffer, the Survey noted.

Economic Survey also noted that currency performance is determined by the economy's ability to generate domestic savings, sustain external balance, attract stable FDI, and build export competitiveness rooted in innovation, productivity and quality.

India's external debt stood at $746 billion at end-September 2025, up from $736.3 billion at end-March 2025 while the External Debt to GDP ratio stood at 19.2 percent at the end of September 2025.

Further, the external debt constitutes less than 5 per cent of the India's total debt, which mitigates the external sector risks.

- IANS