Chief Economic Advisor on Dollar: Nageshwaran said that at present there is no practical alternative to the US dollar and it may take a long time for it to rise.

V Anantha Nageswaran On Dollar: Amid the ongoing tariff tension with the US, the question is being raised whether India is looking for an alternative to the US dollar. Chief Economic Advisor V. Anantha Nageswaran has made it very clear that India is not considering the use of any other currency as an alternative to the US dollar in global trade.

Responding to a question on Wednesday, the Chief Economic Adviser said that India is not a part of any such initiative. However, at the BRICS summit held in Kazan, Russia in October last year, India and other BRICS countries had considered cross-border payment settlement in local currencies. Along with this, it was agreed to introduce a special 'BRICS currency'.

There is no alternative to the dollar at the moment

Nageshwaran says that at present there is no viable alternative to the US dollar. It may take a long time for it to rise. He said that central banks maintain their foreign exchange reserves on a diversified basis. Also, the Reserve Bank has also increased its share in gold purchases in the last few years. The Chief Economic Advisor said that therefore, the structure of foreign exchange reserves including gold is being constantly paid attention to.

What was said in the BRICS summit?

The declaration of the 16th BRICS summit to be held in October 2024 stated that there is a need for faster, lower cost, more efficient, transparent, secure and inclusive cross-border payment instruments based on the principle of reducing trade barriers and non-discriminatory access. The declaration also stated that the use of local currencies in financial transactions between BRICS countries and their trading partners would be welcomed.

BRICS is a group of the world's fastest growing economies, which includes Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Its purpose is to promote a common vision of emerging economies on multilateral forums.