Russian Central Bank buys 0.5 mln oz of gold in Aug, 4.2 mln oz in 8M
MOSCOW. Sept 20 (Interfax) - The Central Bank of Russia bought 0.5 million ounces (around 16 tonnes) of gold in August, the CB said in materials.
The international reserves contained 56.1 million oz (1,745 tonnes) of monetary gold as of September 1, up 0.9% from 55.6 million oz (1,729 tonnes) on July 1.
The value of gold in the reserves rose 4.9% in August to $73.5 billion, which is 17.3% of overall reserves.
The Central Bank bought 4.2 million oz (131 tonnes) of gold in January-August 2017, increasing the volume of gold in reserves by 8.1%. The value of gold in reserves increased 22.1% in the eight months.
The Central Bank stepped up gold buying in 2014-2016, purchasing 6.4 million oz (about 199 tonnes) in 2016, 6.7 million oz (208 tonnes) in 2015 and 5.5 million oz (171 tonnes) in 2014.