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Russia has become the world’s biggest gold buyer on Monday after adding about 570 tons of gold to its reserves in the last decade, reports Bloomberg.
The amount of gold acquired is almost triple the weight of the Statue of Liberty.
Experts say that gold-buying is quite efficient as its price has soared almost 400% since 2000 making it a reliable asset amid the crisis.
For Evgeny Fedorov, a lawmaker for Putin’s United Russia party the reason for the move is simple: “The more gold a country has, the more sovereignty it will have if there’s a cataclysm with the dollar, the euro, the pound or any other reserve currency,” he told Bloomberg.
Russia’s not the only nation that’s been stocking up on gold. China added recently only one-quarter less than Russia and Brazil increased its gold reserves for a third month in a row last November, reaching levels not seen in 12 years.
Central banks have lately been diversifying their holding. The IMF said that — as a group— they are now set to buy almost 500 tonnes of gold before the end of the year. This would represent the highest amount in over 40 years.
Despite the gold enthusiasm, the price for the yellow precious metal was down slightly in early trading on Monday, to $1,658 (U.S.) an ounce, off $9.
(Image of gold winning Russian team by Olga Besnard / Shutterstock.com)
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