Russia's reserves in gold have grown by a record 33% since the beginning of the year

Russia's gold reserves have grown by a record 33% since the beginning of the year and by November exceeded $200 billion for the first time in the country's history, Izvestia has found out. At the same time, in physical terms, the volume of Russia's reserves in gold has remained virtually unchanged since the beginning of the year - it amounts to 75 million troy ounces (or 2.33 billion tons).

"The dynamics of Russia's international reserves in recent years is mainly due to market and currency revaluation and the Bank of Russia's operations with the National Wealth Fund's funds," the Central Bank told Izvestia.

According to Nikolay Dudchenko, analyst at Finam FG, the Bank of Russia's data reflects the growth in the value of monetary gold. He pointed out that over the month to early November it rose in price by 4% to $2744 per troy ounce - the reserves of the Russian Federation in monetary gold for the same period increased by a comparable amount.

International reserves consist not only of gold, but also of foreign currency assets - euros, dollars and yuan. According to the Central Bank, their size has increased by 5% since the beginning of the year and reached $631 billion. The share of gold in them has risen to a third, although in early 2024 it was only slightly above a quarter.

The data of the World Gold Council for the second quarter shows that the Russian Federation ranks fifth in terms of all gold reserves. In this rating Russia is overtaken by China, Japan, the United States and India.

The country's gold and foreign exchange reserves are a kind of "safety cushion" for the state. It is built up in times favorable for the economy and spent in a crisis. Freedom Finance Global analyst Vladimir Chernov noted that international reserves help insure the risks of budget deficit and failure to fulfill social obligations, especially in conditions of economic difficulties, force majeure, sanctions or increased spending. They are also used to stabilize the exchange rate and to stimulate the economy.

Read more in Izvestia's exclusive piece:

Additional ounces: the Russian Federation's reserves in gold exceeded a record $200 billion