Ahmedabad: According to the latest data of the Reserve Bank, the country’s gold reserves increased by 0.57 tonnes to 879.58 tonnes during March. Thus, RBI bought 3.37 tonnes of gold during the first quarter of this year. After continuous purchasing and a spectacular rise in prices, precious metal stake in the Reserve Bank’s total foreign exchange reserves (Forex Reserve) has increased to an all -time high of 11.7 percent. It is 57.5 tonnes compared to the same period last year, ie about 4 percent more.
As of 29 March 2024, the total gold reserves of the country were 822.09 tonnes and at that time it had only 8 percent stake in foreign exchange reserves. From January to November last year, RBI bought 6.6 tonnes of gold on an average.
Since January last year, RBI has been continuously increasing its gold reserves. Except for December 2024 and February 2025, RBI bought an average of 6.3 tonnes of gold in the remaining 13 months. According to experts, in view of the changing geopolitical scenario, developing countries like India are constantly increasing their gold reserves. Increasing the share of gold in foreign exchange reserves is also part of the strategy to diversify foreign exchange reserves.
Earlier, the Reserve Bank had increased its gold reserves in 2024 for the seventh consecutive year. Last year, the Reserve Bank bought 72.6 tonnes of gold. This is the third largest purchase of gold by the central bank after 2001 on an annual basis. More purchases were observed in 2021 and 2009. RBI bought 77 tonnes of gold in 2021, while in 2009 200 tonnes of gold was purchased.
Meanwhile, China’s central bank bought gold for the fifth consecutive month in March. According to China’s central bank, People’s Bank of China, it bought 3 tonnes (0.09 million ounces) gold in March.
After a six -month gap, People’s Bank of China bought gold in the fifth consecutive month (from November 2024 to March 2025). In the first three months of the current calendar year, China’s gold reserves rose 13 tonnes to 2,292 tonnes.
According to experts, if the trade struggle between China and the US increases due to Trump’s policies, the central bank of China may further increase its gold procurement. This is possible because the gold part in China’s total foreign exchange reserves is still less than 7 percent.
Whereas in India’s total foreign exchange reserves, the gold share has increased to more than 11 percent. Experts believe that China wants to increase its stake in gold at least 10 percent in view of the changing geopolitical scenario.
The World Gold Council Survey (2024 Central Bank Gold Reserve (CBGR) Survey) has also shown that the biggest reason for the purchase by central banks is the role of gold in diverse effectively the portfolio, while the lack of default risk in gold is the reason for this.
The post Gold portion in foreign exchange reserves increased to about 12 percent first appeared on News India Live | Breaking India News, The Indian Headline, India Express News, Fast India News.
