BAKU, Azerbaijan, Jan. 21
By Klavdiya Romakayeva - Trend:
The volume of gross gold and foreign exchange reserves of Uzbekistan as of January 1, 2021, increased by $2 billion compared to last month and amounted to $34.9 billion, Trend reports referring to the Central Bank of Uzbekistan (CBU).
According to the CBU, the international reserves of Uzbekistan amounted to $33.8 billion, while last month their volume reached $31.9 billion. Last month, the volume of reserves in foreign currency was less by almost $2 billion (as of December 1, 2020, it amounted to $32.8 billion).
It was noted that gold and foreign exchange reserves are showing growth since the beginning of 2021. In the last four months of 2020, they have been decreasing.
It is reported that the bulk of the country's gold and foreign exchange reserves, $20.21 billion, is stored in the form of monetary gold. Some $14.03 billion is held in foreign exchange and deposits ($14.04 billion last month).
CBU reports that the cost of one ounce of gold on January 21 amounted to $1,843. As of November 15, 2020, the cost of one ounce of gold amounted to $1,842
Earlier, an expert at the Center for Economic Research and Reforms Khalilullokh Khamidov explained that the increase in gold and foreign exchange reserves from January through August 2020 was mainly due to a significant increase in gold prices in the world market, and a decrease in the net volume of gold by 37 tons this year cannot be evidence that Uzbekistan's foreign exchange reserves have decreased.
Moreover, given the record rise in gold prices, some gold reserves were moved from monetary gold to foreign exchange reserves, which increased as a result.
“This is one of the most effective solutions especially in light of the fact that the price of gold in the world market began to decline from a record high,” he said.
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