From having the most amount of gold per capita, to conspiracy theories about gold bars missing,
here the top 10 countries with the largest amount of gold reserves in the world!
10.)
India According to the World Gold Council, the Bank
of India currently holds 557.7 tons of gold.
It is one of the largest stores of gold in the world!
This makes up 9.9 % of the country’s total foreign reserve.
Foreign exchange reserves is money or other assets held by a nation’s central bank so
they can back the national currency.
India, home to 1.25 billion people, is the number one largest consumer of the precious
metal.
Furthermore, India is one of the most reliable drivers of global demand.
For example, India’s festival and wedding season, which runs from October to December,
has historically been a major market for gold.
And probably, one of the most interesting facts about India and gold is that India rarely
invests much in gold.
This is because as a country, India operates under the belief that buying gold leads to
a deficit.
And their belief must be proving right as things also seem to be improving for India.
For instance, if you look at the last few years, India has increased its gold reserves
from 557.74 to 557.77.
While this might not seem like a lot, India is also at its highest point in history!
In addition to what the country holds, Indian households which are considered the world’s
largest hoarders of gold, hold a record 23,000-24,000 tons, which is worth about $800 billion.
9.)
Netherlands In the past few years, the Netherlands has
held 52% of its foreign reserve in gold.
The Netherlands has a reported 612.45 tons.
In 2016 it was reported that the bank was looking for a place to store all its gold
because they were going to renovate the vaults and needed to moving it.
The Dutch central bank is planning to move the country’s gold reserves from the center
of Amsterdam to a new complex called the Cash Center.
Like most countries, Dutch gold is also held in banks around the world to reduce risk.
Security measures to guard the gold 24/7 have become a problem in Amsterdam.
189,000 kilos of gold will be moved at the beginning of 2022.
Maybe this is one reason that over the last decade and a half, the Netherlands was selling
off tons of gold in order to reduce its reserve.
However, there weren’t that many buyers out there and they sold less than the country
wanted.
More recently the country has had less ambition to sell gold.
Currently, the country holds the same amount of tons, 612.45 that they have over the last
few years.
However, the country has increased its percentage of foreign reserves to 61.2 %.
8.)
Japan Japan is another country which had been increasing
its gold reserves since the 1960’s.
Their official gold holdings were reported at 765.2 tons.
About 2.4% of Japan’s gold today is in foreign reserve.
Historically, Japan has always held a bit more gold than other countries.
This was true until 2011, when they began to sell some of their reserve in order to
pump money into the economy after the tsunami and the following Fukushima nuclear disaster.
But even with selling, Japan’s central bank has been one of the most aggressive practitioners
of quantitative easing.
For example, in January of 2016, it lowered interest rates below zero, which has helped
fuel demand in gold around the world.
7.)
Switzerland Prior to 1997, Switzerland was steadily building
its gold reserves.
In 1997, the decision was made to sell some of those reserves to bolster the Swiss currency
and diversify the foreign reserves.
The percent of foreign reserves in Switzerland is currently 6.7 %.
Switzerland actually has the world’s largest reserves of gold per capita and currently
has reported 1,040 tons.
Over time, many citizens in the country started to feel like the bank was getting rid of too
much gold.
They then banded together with the “Save the Swiss” movement.
However, once everyone was able to vote in 2014, the vote came to a no, and gold continued
to be sold.
During World War II, Switzerland became the center of the gold trade in Europe, making
transactions with both the Allies and Axis powers.
Today, much of its gold trading is done with Hong Kong and China.
Around last year, the Swiss National Bank made a $5.9 billion profit, reportedly from
its gold holdings.
6.)
Russia Russia is the fourth largest producer of gold
in the world, and has been building up its own reserves since 2006 in order to diversify.
After a domestic purchase in 2012 of around 75 tons, the Russian gold reserve total reaches
almost 970 tons.
This investment brings the foreign reserve percentage up to 9.8 %. Ideally the goal is
10%.
However, Russia continued to steadily build up its gold reserves.
In 2015, Russia was the top buyer, adding a record 206 tons in its effort to diversify
away from the US dollar.
As we all know, its relationship with the US and Europe has grown chilly once more since
the annexation of the Crimean Peninsula in mid-2014.
To raise the cash for these purchases, Russia sold a huge percentage of its United States
Treasuries.
Today, Russia sits at about 1,460 tons with 15 % in foreign reserves.
5.)
China China is the world’s number one producer
of gold, and yet very little of that gold is held in reserve for the country.
Instead, most of it is sold and the profit is reinvested in Chinese markets.
In the coming years, however, China looks to be expanding its need for gold, to increase
its foreign reserves.
A few years ago, China held 1,054.1 tons of gold in reserve and had 1.7% in foreign reserves.
In the summer of 2015, the People’s Bank of China began sharing its gold purchasing
activity on a monthly basis for the first time since 2009.
In December of that same year, the Renminbi joined the Dollar, Euro, Yen and Pound as
one of the International Monetary Fund’s reserve currencies.
This move required China to beef up its gold holdings.
Today, China is sitting strong with 1,797.5 tons and 2.2% foreign reserves.
4.)
France France is the first country on this list to
break 2,000 tons of gold in reserve.
The country currently holds 2,435.7 tons.
Several years ago the country sold over 500 tons, but then decided they would slowly stop
selling gold over the coming years.
Previously, France has had the highest reserve percentage in gold investment, at 65 %. However,
over the last few years, the percentage has gone down even though the tons have increased.
Today, the country sits at about a 62.9 % of foreign reserves.
Over the past few years, France’s central bank has sold little of its gold and there
are calls to stop selling it altogether.
Marine Le Pen, President of the country’s far-right National Front party, has led the
charge not only to put a freeze on selling the nation’s gold but also to repatriate
the entire amount from foreign vaults and bring it all back to France.
3.)
Italy Italy has seen its share of economic problems
in the last decade, and its high gold reserve percentage is a symptom of the larger problem.
In fact, while Italy seems to have stabilized, it hasn’t really done anything related to
gold in the last few years.
However, in foreign reserve, Italy has grown pretty well.
Previously, Italy’s foreign reserve ratio sat at 65 %, with the country holding slightly
more gold than France.
Currently, Italy is still stronger than France, holding a 68 percentage in foreign reserves.
Today, Italy holds 2,451.8 tons of gold in reserve.
Unlike other countries, Italy has maintained the size of its reserves over the years, and
it has the support of European Central Bank (ECB) President Mario Draghi.
The former Bank of Italy governor, when asked by a reporter in 2013 what role gold plays
in a central banks portfolio, Mario answered that the gold was "a reserve of safety," adding,
it gives you a fairly good protection against fluctuations against the dollar.
So, while some might see Italy holding onto their gold as being weak, there is a method
to the madness.
2.)
Germany As the second largest holder of gold reserves
in the world, Germany has been selling gold in small amounts over the last several years.
Previous statistics show that Germany had 3,390.6 tons, making up 66 % of the country’s
foreign reserves.
However, today, Germany has about 3,381 tons and has 68.9 % in foreign reserves.
In fact, in August of 2017, Germany’s central bank announced it had completed a program
to repatriate gold bars worth nearly $31 billion from storage locations in New York and Paris.
In total 743 tons were transferred.
The bank said it was to help rebuild public trust and confidence and they are no longer
worried about stopping their gold reserves from falling under Soviet control.
There were rumors going around that the gold was actually missing and that the bars they
were bringing in were fake.
Outside tests were performed and the gold was ruled genuine.
Germany’s got its gold back!
1.)
United States of America The United States is the third largest producer
of gold and the single largest holder of gold reserves in the world.
Previously, the United States’ gold reserve percentage was 70 %, with the physical stockpile
reaching 8,133.5 tons.
This number has fallen in the last half-century from the all-time high of over 20,000 tons.
Now the US has 8,133.5 tons with a foreign reserve percentage of 74.9 %. In fact, for
the past few years, the United States gold reserves have not changed at all, and it is
one of the few countries on the top 10 list to do so.
With the largest holdings in the world, the United States lays claim to nearly as much
gold as the next three countries combined!
It also has one of the highest gold allocations as a percentage of its foreign reserves, second
only to Tajikistan, where the metal accounts for more than 88 %. You may have heard that
President Donald Trump made headlines recently, claiming “we do not have the gold,” but
from what we know, the majority of U.S. gold is held at Fort Knox in Kentucky, with the
remainder held at the Philadelphia Mint, Denver Mint, San Francisco Assay Office and West
Point Bullion Depository.
But don't get any ideas!
Plus no ones really worried about gold right now, since everyone's watching bitcoin!
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