Uzbekistan’s gold and foreign exchange reserves increased by $1.9 billion amid rising gold prices

Uzbekistan’s official reserve assets amounted to $32.9 billion as of November 1, having increased by $1.86 billion in October, the correspondent of “Gazeta.uz” reports, citing data from the Central Bank.

Reserves rose for the first time after falling for six straight months and reaching their lowest level since April 1, 2020. Since the beginning of the year, the country’s “financial airbag” has decreased by $3 billion.

Last month, foreign currency reserves increased by $988.2 million (+13.3%) to $8.38 billion. Despite this, since the beginning of the year, foreign exchange reserves have decreased by $3.26 billion.

The increase in reserves can be explained by the possible sale of gold in October. This is evidenced by a reduction in the physical volume of the precious metal in reserves by 0.3 million troy ounces (9.6 tons) to 12 million troy ounces (about 379.4 tons). Since the beginning of the year, gold in reserves has decreased by 0.7 million troy ounces, or 21.7 tons.

Despite the decrease in physical volume, the value of gold reserves increased by $876.9 million. At the end of October, quotes for this precious metal exceeded $2,000 per ounce (at the beginning of last month it was around $1,850), according to Bloomberg, amid the escalation of the conflict in the Middle East.