Exchange rate variation inflates external debt: RBI

However, if the dollar had weakened against other currencies including Rupee, India’s external debt would have declined by $10 billion during September-December 2009, said the report.

After taking into account the valuation effect of $18.7 billion dollars—the changes in the value of assets India holds abroad, minus the changes in the value of domestic assets held by foreign investors—the country’s external debt during the the three-month period rose by $8.7 billion to $251.4 billion dollars as on December 31, 2009.

In rupee terms, India’s external debt worked out to be about Rs 12 lakh crore.

It  also said at the end of December, the external debt basket comprised 52 per cent of dollar denominated debt, followed by rupee debt at 17.2 per cent, yen debt at 12.7 per cent, Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) issued by IMF at 11.4 per cent and Euro at 4.2 per cent among others.

The rupee component of the external debt include NRI deposits, Foreign Institutional Investor’s (FII) investment in government and non-government securities and debt owed to Russia. Out of the total external debt, the government’s debt accounted for 26 per cent at $66.9 billion, while the remaining portion was on account of borrowings by corporates. The non-government debt, it said, has increased to $184.46 billion at the end of December.
Press Trust of India