Gold Reserves 

What are Gold Reserves? 

A gold reserve is, Gold held by a nation’s central bank to back the value of its local currency, throughout the gold standard era, it was used as a guarantee to redeem intentions to pay depositors, noteholders, and trading peers. Additionally, reserves were combined by governments to meet the costs of waging war and to acquire and hold “treasure,” because the policies of the time emphasised the importance of doing so.

Gold reserves are a supportive tool for governments to purchase large amounts of gold to counteract rising inflation. Additionally, the value of imports and exports from a country is highly connected to the country’s currency. If imports exceed exports, the value of the currency declines, and vice versa. This means that a country that exports gold and has a surplus of gold reserves can often see an increase in the strength of its currency. On the other hand, gold can also reduce the value of the currency used to buy it. If many transactions are made in gold, it can devalue the local currency and cause inflation.


 

  • The United States is the largest holder of gold reserves.
  • Central Banks are considered the largest Gold buyers
  • Egypt comes at 31st Place after the latest increase in its gold reserves by approximately 44 tones
  • Below is a list of countries with the largest gold reserves.

Country

Region

Economic grouping

Gold Reserves (Tonnes)

United States of America  North America  High income  8,133.47
Germany Western Europe  High income  3,358.50
Italy Western Europe  High income  2,451.84
France Western Europe  High income  2,436.50
Russian Federation  Central and Eastern Europe  Upper middle income  2,301.64
China East Asia  Upper middle income  1,948.31
Switzerland  Western Europe  High income  1,040.00
Japan East Asia  High income  845.97
India South Asia  Lower middle income  760.40
Netherlands Western Europe  High income  612.45
Turkey Central and Eastern Europe  Upper middle income  431.10
Taiwan Province of China East Asia  High income  423.63
Portugal Western Europe  High income  382.57
Kazakhstan, Rep. of Central Asia  Upper middle income  368.12
Uzbekistan, Rep. of Central Asia  Lower middle income  337.47
Saudi Arabia The Middle East & North Africa  High income  323.07
United Kingdom Western Europe  High income  310.29
Lebanon The Middle East & North Africa  Upper middle income  286.83
Spain Western Europe  High income  281.58
Austria Western Europe  High income  279.99
Thailand South East Asia  Upper middle income  244.16
Poland, Rep. of Central and Eastern Europe  High income  228.66
Belgium Western Europe  High income  227.40
Algeria Middle East & North Africa  Lower middle income  173.56
Venezuela, Republica Bolivariana de Latin America & Caribbean  Upper middle income  161.22
Philippines South East Asia  Lower middle income  156.29
Singapore South East Asia  High income  153.74
Brazil Latin America & Caribbean  Upper middle income  129.65
Sweden Western Europe  High income  125.72
South Africa Sub-Saharan Africa  Upper middle income  125.35
Egypt, Arab Rep. of The Middle East & North Africa  Lower middle income  124.97
Mexico Latin America & Caribbean  Upper middle income  119.91
Libya The Middle East & North Africa  Upper middle income  116.64
Greece Western Europe  High income  114.12
Korea, Rep. of East Asia  High income  104.45
Romania Central and Eastern Europe  High income  103.64
Iraq The Middle East & North Africa  Upper middle income  96.42
Hungary Central and Eastern Europe  High income  94.49
Australia Australasia / Oceania  High income  79.85
Kuwait The Middle East & North Africa  High income  78.97
Indonesia South East Asia  Upper middle income  78.57
Denmark Western Europe  High income  66.55
Pakistan South Asia  Lower middle income  64.65
Argentina Latin America & Caribbean  Upper middle income  61.74
United Arab Emirates The Middle East & North Africa  High income  55.43
Belarus, Rep. of4) Central and Eastern Europe  Upper middle income  53.37
Qatar The Middle East & North Africa  High income  51.29