RT reported that, according to the Central Bank of Russia , Russia's gold reserves have reached a new high of $188.8 billion and the share of gold in the country's international reserves has now exceeded 30% - for the first time in nearly a quarter of a century.
The value of gold in international reserves has increased by more than $9 billion, or 5.1%, since the beginning of August, the Central Bank of Russia said.
Gold prices rose 3.6% in August and ended the month at $2,513 an ounce, meaning a significant portion of the increase in the value of Russia's gold reserves was due to rising gold prices.
However, this is still the highest share of gold in Russia's international assets since January 2000, when it reached 31.2%. The highest level in the country's modern history was recorded in January 1993, at 56.9%.
According to the Central Bank of Russia, the country's international reserves continued to increase, reaching $613.7 billion as of September 1, up more than $11 billion from the previous month.
Russia's international reserves are officially defined as highly liquid foreign assets held by the Central Bank of Russia and the government of the country, including foreign currency, special drawing rights with the IMF and gold.
Nearly half of Russia's international reserves were frozen in the West in early 2022 as part of Ukraine -related sanctions . The Russian Central Bank has not provided details of the nearly $300 billion freeze.
The unfrozen portion of Russia's reserves includes gold and foreign currency held domestically, as well as Chinese yuan.
Russia’s Central Bank Governor Elvira Nabiullina said the country’s financial stability would not be affected if the West seized its frozen assets . Nabiullina said the central bank had been diversifying its foreign exchange reserves for years and was conducting operations with reserves not affected by sanctions.
Moscow has condemned the central bank's asset freeze as illegal, saying it "undermines the credibility" of Western countries. The Kremlin has warned of retaliation if the funds are seized.
