Second Russian President Vladimir Putin holds a gold bar while visiting an exhibition at Russia's Far Eastern gold mining center of Magadan, November 22, 2005.
Photo: Reuters
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Russian Reserves Reach $597 Billion
The Central Bank of Russia’s gold and currency reserves totaled $597.3 billion on August 1. They rose 0.8 percent, or $5 billion, since July 25 and rose $28.8 billion in the last four weeks. In the last 25 business days, they have risen $33.8 billion, or 6 percent. This rapid increase is due to the significant rise in the value of the euro against the U.S. dollar and the Central Bank’s persistent purchasing of foreign currency on the domestic market.
Russia has the third highest reserves in the world at present, following the People’s Republic of China and Japan. Chinese reserves at the end of June exceeded $1.8 trillion, having risen 35.73 percent in the last year. Although the growth rate of the Chinese reserves in June was half that of April and May, it still leads the world in growth, due to the huge trade reserve it enjoys with the United States.
Japan’s reserves at the end of June were $1.002 trillion. It had increased its reserves by more than $3 billion, up from $996.9 billion the month before, which was its largest increase in three months. Investment and the falling American dollar helped Japan boost its reserves as its Eurobonds became more valuable. High gold prices also played a positive role.
www.kommersant.com
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