Egypt’s central bank expands gold holdings in 2022

The amount of gold in the Central Bank of Egypt increased by 54 percent, reaching 125 tonnes at the end of February, equivalent to 17 percent of Egypt’s total reserves, according to the latest World Gold Council report. 

According to the survey, Egypt purchased 44.1 tonnes of gold in February, making it the largest buyer of gold so far. Turkey came second, having bought 42.5 tonnes by the end of April. 

Last month, the Central Bank of Egypt announced that net foreign reserves in the country rose by 41 million dollars in April, to reach $37.123 billion, compared to $37.082 billion in March. 

The Central Bank said that the value of gold included in the foreign exchange reserves also increased during February 2022 by about $2.703 billion, to reach $6.907 billion, compared to $4.204 billion at the end of January 2022.

Gold holdings of central banks expanded in April by 19.4 tonnes, driven primarily by purchases in certain markets, said the World Gold Council report.

Data showed that the central banks in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Turkey were the major buyers during the month, adding 8.7 tonnes, 5.3 tonnes, and 5.6 tonnes to their gold reserves, respectively. However, on a year-to-date basis, Egypt emerged as the largest gold buyer.