The Central Bank picked up the pace of gold purchases in November, diversifying reserves as a weaker dollar boosts the appeal of bullion, according to Renaissance Capital.
Russia’s gold reserve probably rose by $790 million to $23.1 billion in the week ended Nov. 27, Anton Nikitin, an analyst at Renaissance Capital in Moscow, wrote in a research note Friday. The Central Bank increased gold holdings by almost 130 million metric tons in the last year, according to the report. The bank’s holdings equaled $23 billion on Dec. 1, a gain of 13 percent in the month, the regulator said Friday.
The bank “is successfully managing its assets via reallocating them to different classes,” Nikitin wrote. “Gold amounts in the reserves have been increasing since December 2008, and we think the amount” rose in November.
Russia plans to increase gold holdings and diversify the structure of its reserves, seeking alternatives to a weakening dollar.