Russia bought 28 tonnes of gold in October

Russia added 28 tonnes of gold to its stock in October added. According to the latest figures from the central bank, the total size of the gold stock rose to 2,065 tonnes. It seems that Russia has kicked its gold purchases into high gear, because in the first ten months of this year more precious metal was bought than in the whole of 2017.

The gold purchases of the past year are hardly reflected in the central bank's balance sheet total. Due to the decrease in Gold price the gold reserve is put on the balance sheet at an increasingly lower value, with the result that the total value of the gold reserve at the time of writing is a few billion dollars lower than at the beginning of this year.

More central banks are buying gold

Russia has added gold to its reserves almost continuously in recent years. In ten years, the country managed to quadruple its gold reserves from about 500 to more than 2,000 tons. More and more countries are following suit, because in recent months Hungary and Poland have also returned to gold for the first time in a long time purchased.

Since the outbreak of the credit crisis in 2008, central banks have been paying close attention to gold again. Several emerging economies are adding precious metals to their reserves, while several European countries have decided in recent years to return part of their gold reserves to their own countries. Think, for example, of the Netherlands, Germany and Austria.

For Russia, the gold stock serves as a kind of insurance against economic sanctions. The precious metal has no counterparty risk like government bonds and can be traded under all circumstances. It is worth noting that since the introduction of Western sanctions in 2014, Russia has stepped up its gold purchases.

Russia adds 28 tonnes of gold to reserve

Gold vs Currency Reserve Russia

Gold purchases in high gear