World Gold Council data, released in July, show that the United States continues to top the list of countries with the most precious metal reserves, far ahead of its closest competitors.
The data published by "Novosti", available through the Council's website, indicates the continued growth of the Russian Central Bank's possession of gold during the past decade, as its reserves jumped from about 700 tons in 2010 to more than 2000 tons this year.
The possession of gold at the US central bank accounted for 78% of the total foreign reserves, which was surpassed only by Venezuela, which recorded 82% (161 tons), but the Latin country is suffering mainly a crisis in obtaining hard currency after the collapse of its oil sector and the deterioration of the economy.
At the level of the Arab countries, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon came in the list of the 20 most gold-holding countries among their foreign reserves, with the former possessing 323.1 tons of precious metal, and the second possessing 286.8 tons.
Remarkably, Libya came 33rd in the world with 116.6 tons. Egypt ranked 40th with 79.5 tons of gold. While Syria ranked 60th with 25.8 tons of gold.
The ranking of the countries with the most gold in their foreign reserves:
1- America 8133 tons
2- Germany 3363 tons
3- International Monetary Fund 2814 tons
4- Italy 2451 tons
5- France 2436 tons
6- Russia 2299 tons
7- China 1948 tons
8- Switzerland 1040 tons
9- Japan 765 tons
10- India 654 tons