Uzbekistan’s gold and foreign exchange reserves increase by $745 million

The gold and foreign exchange reserves of Uzbekistan as of May 1, 2022 amounted to $35.900 billion, Spot reports referring to the CB data. Compared to the previous month, they increased by $745 million.

The foreign exchange part of the reserve recovered in April after a sharp decline in March. The growth amounted to $332 million. Foreign exchange reserves approached the figures of February and amounted to $13.505 billion.

In addition, the gold reserve also increased by $444 million (up to $21.327 billion) due to the growth in the physical volume of gold, which increased by 345.24 kg in reserves (from 10.9 to 11.1 million troy ounces).

It is noted that the available reserves significantly exceed the country’s annual imports, which amounted to $25.5 billion in 2021. In turn, according to the recommendations of international organizations for developing countries, the reserves should cover at least 3-month imports.

Among other things, reserves are considered a country’s “airbag” – they are needed as a buffer in case of adverse external shocks, and the adequacy of reserves directly depends on the nature of these shocks.

The current reserves will be enough to finance more than 20 months of imports. This is much more than the indicator recommended by international organizations for developing countries, which is three months.