India's external debt increased by $ 10.5 billion to $ 317 billion in April-June

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period of this fiscal over the last quarter of 2010-11, mainly due to the rise in commercial borrowings and trade credit.

As per the data released by the Reserve Bank, about 70 per cent of the increase in total external debt in the first quarter of 2011-12 was on account of commercial borrowings and short-term trade credits broadly reflecting surge in imports.

Share of commercial borrowings in total external debt continued to be the highest at 29.4 per cent at the end of June 2011, followed by short-term debt (21.6 per cent), non- resident deposits (16.7 per cent) and multilateral debt (15.6 per cent).

"The long-term debt at $ 248.5 billion and short-term debt at $ 68.5 billion accounted for 78.4 per cent and 21.6 per cent, respectively, of the total external debt as at end-June 2011," RBI said.

It further said that Government (Sovereign) external debt stood at $ 78.7 billion in the quarter under review as against $ 78.2 billion as at the end of March 2011.

According to the standard practice, India's external debt statistics for the quarters ending March and June are released by the RBI and those ending September and December by the Finance Ministry.

The central bank further said that excluding the valuation effects due to the depreciation of the US dollar against other major currencies and Indian rupee, the increase in external debt at the end of June worked out to be $ 9.1 billion over the previous quarter.

The ratio of foreign exchange reserves to external debt at the end of June 2011 was 99.6 per cent, almost the same level as at the end of March 2011, it added.