Uzbekistan's official reserve assets as of March 1, 2024, amounted to $32.19 billion, decreasing by $2.37 billion in January-February, according to the Central Bank data. The Central Bank, which had delayed publishing data on gold and foreign exchange reserves for January, has now presented the figures for the two months.
The regulator's data shows that in January, foreign currency reserves decreased by $1.44 billion, followed by an additional $381.5 million in February, totaling a decrease of $1.82 billion to $7.55 billion. This marks the lowest level since September 2023.
The physical volume of gold initially increased by 0.3 million troy ounces (9.3 tons) and then decreased by the same amount. As a result, the reserves retained 11.9 million troy ounces of the precious metal (370.1 tons), but the value of the gold reserve decreased by $535.4 million.
In January, gold prices dropped from $2076 to $2066 and further to $2059 by the end of February. However, in March, the price of gold hit multiple historical records, approaching $2200 per ounce.
The Central Bank of Uzbekistan attributes the reduction in international reserve volume to a "seasonal nature," typically observed in January and February. The dynamics were also influenced by Uzbekistan's repayment of a portion of sovereign eurobonds issued in 2019, with $500 million due on February 20.
In 2023, the country's "financial cushion" decreased by $1.2 billion to $34.56 billion, marking the first annual decrease in reserves since 2018. The physical volume of gold decreased by nearly 25 tons over the year.
