Global Central Banks Continue to Stockpile Gold as Iraq Maintains its Position

Shafaq News / The World Gold Council announced that global central banks have purchased 52 tons of gold, while Iraq maintained its position as the 30th largest holder of gold in the world.

According to the Council's latest report for April 2023, "Global central banks added a net 52 tons of gold to their international reserves during February, marking the eleventh consecutive monthly increase."

The Council added that "the People's Bank of China purchased 25 tons of gold, while the Central Bank of Turkey bought 9 tons, Uzbekistan 8 tons, Singapore 7 tons, and India 3 tons." The Council further noted that "the Central Bank of Kazakhstan was the only bank to sell gold, with a total of 3 tons sold."

The World Gold Council also explained that Iraq maintained its global ranking of 30 out of 100 countries listed on the table with the largest gold reserves, after rising ten ranks in July 2022 by purchasing 33.9 tons of gold, bringing its total holdings to 130.3 tons, which represents 8.2% of its other reserves.

Globally, and according to the table, the United States still holds the largest gold reserves in the world with 8,133 tons, followed by Germany with 3,355 tons and Italy with 2,451 tons. El Salvador ranked last at 100th place with only 1.4 tons, while Suriname ranked just above it with 1.5 tons.

Iraq had announced in June 27, 2022, the purchase of new quantities of gold totaling approximately 34 tons, a 35% increase from its previous holdings.

It is worth noting that the World Gold Council, headquartered in the United Kingdom, has extensive experience and deep knowledge of market-changing factors and is made up of the world's largest gold mining companies.