Country's forex reserves rose for a second consecutive week, going up by a robust USD 2.544 billion to USD 353.408 billion as of March 18 on a healthy rise in the core currency assets, the Reserve Bank said today.

After falling for two straight weeks, the total reserves had risen massively by USD 4.075 billion to USD 350.86 billion at the end of the previous reporting week.

The foreign currency assets (FCAs), a major component of overall reserves, increased by USD 2.524 billion to USD 329.999 billion in the reporting period, an RBI release said.

FCAs, expressed in dollar terms, include the effect of appreciation and depreciation of non-US currencies, such as the euro, pound and the yen, held in the reserves.

Gold reserves were unchanged at USD 19.324 billion.

India's special drawing rights with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) rose by USD 7.2 million to USD 1.486 billion, while the country's reserve position with the Fund went up by USD 12.7 million to USD 2.597 billion, the RBI said.