Business
India’s Forex Reserves Jump To $702.3 Billion, Gold Holdings Hit Record $108.5 Billion
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India’s forex reserves rose to $702.3 billion, driven by gold at $108.5 billion, while foreign currency assets fell, RBI reported.
RBI’s gold reserve doubled in the past 10 years.
India’s foreign exchange reserves climbed by $4.5 billion to reach $702.3 billion for the week ending October 17, largely driven by a significant increase in gold holdings, according to data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday.
Gold reserves, a part of India’s forex reserves, jumped by $6.2 billion to surpass $108.5 billion for the first time. This rise was fueled by higher global gold prices and proactive purchases by the central bank.
In contrast, foreign currency assets, which make up the bulk of the reserves, fell by $1.7 billion to $570.4 billion during the week, affected by volatility in currencies like the euro, pound, and yen. Meanwhile, India’s reserve position with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) slipped slightly by $30 million to $4.62 billion.
Over the last ten years, the share of gold in India’s foreign exchange reserves has nearly doubled—from under 7 per cent to nearly 15 per cent.
Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) were at $18.7 billion, while India’s reserve position in the IMF stood at $4.6 billion.
Over the year, India’s total reserves have increased by $14.0 billion from the end of March 2025, reflecting strong capital inflows and robust forex management by the central bank. However, foreign currency assets saw a modest decline of $27.8 billion from March levels, partly offset by gains in gold and SDRs.
The RBI’s weekly bulletin also reported loans and advances to state governments at ₹30,095 crore as of October 17, up from ₹16,116 crore the previous week, highlighting continued support to state-level fiscal operations.
Prices of the yellow metal have surged over 60% this year. Gold’s rally has been fuelled by strong safe-haven demand, aggressive central bank purchases, a weakening rupee, and expectations of further rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve.
Other metal silver and platinum also followed the upward trajectory. Unlike from gold, silver has an industrial use with experts indicating supply-demand deficit and positive gold-to-silver ratio.
Varun Yadav is a Sub Editor at News18 Business Digital. He writes articles on markets, personal finance, technology, and more. He completed his post-graduation diploma in English Journalism from the Indian Inst…Read More
Varun Yadav is a Sub Editor at News18 Business Digital. He writes articles on markets, personal finance, technology, and more. He completed his post-graduation diploma in English Journalism from the Indian Inst… Read More
October 25, 2025, 17:03 IST
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Business
SC permits Centre to review Rs 6,000cr additional dues on Vodafone-Idea – The Times of India
NEW DELHI: The Union govt on Monday convinced the Supreme Court to permit the department of telecom to review its demand of Rs 6,000 crore additional adjusted gross revenue demand for the FY 2016-17 on Vodafone-Idea. Chief Justice B R Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran was informed by solicitor general Tushar Mehta that since the previous round of litigation, in which Vodafone was ordered to pay the AGR dues, there had been a change of circumstance as the Centre has acquired a 49% stake in the company. Mehta said, “We do not want the company, in which the govt has a huge investment, to go bankrupt to make 20 crore people suffer. ‘Govt wants to prevent monopoly’ Govt wants more players in the mobile telecom sector to prevent monopoly,” said solicitor general Tushar Mehta. Vodafone through senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi had argued that the SC had frozen the AGR dues at Rs 58,254 crore as of 2016-17 and that the DoT cannot raise additional AGR dues in breach of the SC order. Govt had converted Rs 36,950 cr dues as its 49% equity in the telecom service provider.
The bench noticed the element of public interest in the case and permitted the Centre to take a fresh view of the additional AGR demands, especially when the issue is purely in the policy domain and involves the interests of 20 crore people. “We see no reason why the Centre should be prevented from taking a relook at the additional AGR dues,” the bench said.
OpenAI has released new estimates of the number of ChatGPT users who exhibit possible signs of mental health emergencies, including mania, psychosis or suicidal thoughts.
The company said that around .07% of ChatGPT users active in a given week exhibited such signs, adding that its artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot recognizes and responds to these sensitive conversations.
While OpenAI maintains these cases are “extremely rare,” critics said even a small percentage may amount to hundreds of thousands of people, as ChatGPT recently reached 800 million weekly active users, per boss Sam Altman.
As scrutiny mounts, the company said it built a network of experts around the world to advise it.
Those experts include more than 170 psychiatrists, psychologists, and primary care physicians who have practiced in 60 countries, the company said.
They have devised a series of responses in ChatGPT to encourage users to seek help in the real world, according to OpenAI.
But the glimpse at the company’s data raised eyebrows among some mental health professionals.
“Even though .07% sounds like a small percentage, at a population level with hundreds of millions of users, that actually can be quite a few people,” said Dr. Jason Nagata, a professor who studies technology use among young adults at the University of California, San Francisco.
“AI can broaden access to mental health support, and in some ways support mental health, but we have to be aware of the limitations,” Dr. Nagata added.
The company also estimates .15% of ChatGPT users have conversations that include “explicit indicators of potential suicidal planning or intent.”
OpenAI said recent updates to its chatbot are designed to “respond safely and empathetically to potential signs of delusion or mania” and note “indirect signals of potential self-harm or suicide risk.”
ChatGPT has also been trained to reroute sensitive conversations “originating from other models to safer models” by opening in a new window.
In response to questions by the BBC on criticism about the numbers of people potentially affected, OpenAI said that this small percentage of users amounts to a meaningful amount of people and noted they are taking changes seriously.
The changes come as OpenAI faces mounting legal scrutiny over the way ChatGPT interacts with users.
In one of the most high-profile lawsuits recently filed against OpenAI, a California couple sued the company over the death of their teenage son alleging that ChatGPT encouraged him to take his own life in April.
The lawsuit was filed by the parents of 16-year-old Adam Raine and was the first legal action accusing OpenAI of wrongful death.
In a separate case, the suspect in a murder-suicide that took place in August in Greenwich, Connecticut posted hours of his conversations with ChatGPT, which appear to have fuelled the alleged perpetrator’s delusions.
More users struggle with AI psychosis as “chatbots create the illusion of reality,” said Professor Robin Feldman, Director of the AI Law & Innovation Institute at the University of California Law. “It is a powerful illusion.”
She said OpenAI deserved credit for “sharing statistics and for efforts to improve the problem” but added: “the company can put all kinds of warnings on the screen but a person who is mentally at risk may not be able to heed those warnings.”
UK domestic airline Eastern Airways has suspended operations and all of its flights have been cancelled.
Customers of the airline, which operated regional services from airports across the UK, are being urged not to go to the airport as flights will not be operating, the UK Civil Aviation Authority said.
Destinations the airline flew to included Aberdeen, Humberside, London Gatwick, Newquay, Teesside International and Wick, according to its website.
Eastern Airways customers are being urged to make their own alternative travel arrangements via other airlines, rail or coach operators.
On Monday morning Eastern Airways (UK) Ltd filed a notice of intention to appoint an administrator at the Insolvency and Companies Court, which is within the High Court.
Selina Chadha, consumer and markets director at the UK Civil Aviation Authority, said: “We urge passengers planning to fly with this airline not to go to the airport as all Eastern Airways flights are cancelled.
“Eastern Airways customers should visit the Civil Aviation Authority’s website for the latest information.”
Following the suspension of Eastern Airways operations, London and North Eastern Railway, ScotRail, TransPennine Express, and Northern will offer free standard class travel to Eastern Airways staff and customers on October 28 and 29, on suitable routes operated by each train company, the UK Civil Aviation Authority said.
To access this support, present either an Eastern Airways employee ID, boarding pass, or flight confirmation to station staff.
SC permits Centre to review Rs 6,000cr additional dues on Vodafone-Idea – The Times of India
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OpenAI shares data on ChatGPT users with suicidal thoughts, psychosis
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