Decline in gold prices pushes Uzbekistan's reserves down by $6.8 billion

According to data published by the Central Bank, as of July 1, the country's total gold and foreign exchange reserves stood at $63.75 billion, down $6.82 billion, or 9.67%, from the previous month. The decline was driven primarily by a drop in the value of gold holdings, while foreign currency reserves recorded a smaller decrease in absolute terms.

The value of the Central Bank's gold reserves fell to $55.75 billion, a monthly decline of $5.68 billion, or 9.25%. At the same time, the physical volume of gold increased from 13.6 million troy ounces to 13.88 million troy ounces, equivalent to approximately 431.7 metric tons.

The decrease largely reflected weaker global gold prices during June. The estimated value of one troy ounce of gold fell from around $4,472 at the beginning of the month to about $4,180 by the end of June, a decline of roughly 6.5%. Prices experienced their steepest drop during the third ten-day period of the month, briefly falling below $4,000 per ounce.

The foreign currency component of the reserves stood at $7.44 billion at the end of June, down $1.12 billion, or 13.17%, from a month earlier.

Cash holdings and deposits with other banks declined by nearly 19.8% to $4.58 billion. This included $1.95 billion held with foreign central banks and the International Monetary Fund, as well as $3.39 billion deposited with overseas commercial banks.

Meanwhile, the value of foreign securities on the Central Bank's balance sheet remained broadly unchanged. By the end of June, the portfolio had reached $2.89 billion, up 0.29% from the previous month. As other reserve components declined, the share of foreign securities in total international reserves increased to 4.49%.