Gold has always been considered a safe-haven investment. But it doesn’t just sit around in a vault somewhere. The world’s central banks keep their gold reserves for use by their governments, to back up the money that they print. Below are the six countries with the largest gold reserves in the world today:
The United States
The United States is the largest holder of gold reserves in the world, with 8133 tonnes. It has been this way since April 2013, when it overtook Germany as the biggest holder of precious metals. The US also holds a greater percentage of its total foreign exchange reserves in gold than any other country: 70%. This means that if you want to buy some US dollars, you’ll have to pay for them with something else first–and what better currency could there be than one made from precious metals?
Germany
Germany has the fourth largest gold reserves in the world, worth about $150 billion. Most of Germany’s gold is held by its central bank, the Bundesbank. The legacy of World War II has made it difficult for Germany to sell off its gold reserves, but there are plans in place to do so over time.
Italy
Italy has 2452 tonnes of gold, which makes up 2.4% of its total reserves. The country is the world’s 6th largest gold reserve holder and its gold reserve is worth $100 billion.
France
France has the third largest gold reserves in the world, with 2437 tonnes of gold. That’s about 7.3% of its total reserves and worth about $80 billion. France has been accumulating its stockpile since 1973, when it bought some from other countries that were selling off their holdings due to rising prices. The country was also one of several European nations to repatriate their gold after World War II; it moved all of its reserves back home between 1956 and 1967.
Russia
The world’s third-largest gold reserve is held by Russia, with 2330 tonnes. This impressive figure makes up about 14% of the country’s total foreign exchange reserves. Russia has the largest tonnage of gold reserves in the world, which means that it holds more than any other country in terms of weight rather than value (which also happens to be true). However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that Russia has enough money to buy out all its citizens’ houses or pay their salaries–it just means they have more gold than anyone else! As well as having plenty of physical bullion lying around its vaults at home, Russia has been investing heavily abroad too: since 2009 it has spent over US$100 billion buying foreign assets such as shares and bonds from struggling European banks like Deutsche Bank AG and Société Générale SA
China
China has the world’s largest gold reserves, with 2,842 tons as of February 2019. China is also the world’s largest producer and consumer of gold, accounting for about 30% of global production and consumption. China has been mining for thousands of years; during the Shang Dynasty (1500 BC-1050 BC), people used molten gold to make ornaments and weapons. Today, China produces about one fifth of all mined gold globally–that’s about 450 metric tons each year!
Gold is a valuable asset that can be used in many different ways. It has been used for thousands of years as currency and jewelry, but it also has many other uses today such as electronics or dental fillings.
