The modern world lives in the Jamaican monetary system, created in the late 70s of the twentieth century. Its basis is the "floating" rates of major world currencies. The Jamaican system, in turn, replaced the Bretton Woods system, according to which its golden content was considered the universal equivalent of the value of a particular monetary unit. Thus, since 1978, yellow metal has become just a commodity, the prices of which can rise and fall, depending on the world market. Russia's gold reserve is a stabilization tool and a guarantee of independence.
Does this mean that gold has lost some of its magical properties, and people no longer "die" for this metal? No, it doesn’t. The economic power of a country is determined by many economic indicators, and one of them is considered a gold reserve, measured in tons, millions of troy ounces or other units of mass. In this case, the expression "has weight" gets the most direct and immediate meaning.
In the context of the global crisis, leading economists often express doubts about the effectiveness of the Jamaican currency system, even voices are heard about the possibility of returning the gold equivalent.
The gold reserve of Russia for the most part is stored on Pravda Street in Moscow. Data on its size is currently not a secret, unlike in Soviet times. However, this information is published once a year, in the fall, which means that the number may well grow. The gold reserve of Russia (2012) as of the beginning of October was 30, 000, 000 troy ounces, (for reference, 1 tr.un. = 31.1 g), or 933 tons.
This national treasure is stored in standard bullion of several sizes. Gold is heavy metal, so a kilogram bar can disappoint with its more than modest geometric dimensions.
Compared to many other reserves, Russia's gold reserves are not the largest, but sixth among world leaders means something, especially considering the general trend of its growth. This year alone, it increased by more than three dozen tons.
Russia's gold reserve experienced some decline with the onset of the global financial crisis. Then part of the precious metal was spent in
in order to stabilize the national economy, but soon the curve began to grow again, and now, perhaps, nothing will stop it.
The dynamics of gold prices is also encouraging, it has a pronounced growth trend. The amount of minerals on the planet is limited, precious metals are used not only for trade operations and jewelry making, they are widely used in technology, especially in electronic.
The Russian gold reserve is replenished through purchases of precious metals from mining companies. There is no sense in acquiring “yellow metal” from foreign producers on a large-scale basis; huge reserves of natural gold make it possible to dispense with internal reserves. The exceptions are situations in which the price of this metal suddenly begins to fall due to a sharply increased supply, and it needs to be supported.
Russia's gold reserve is a guarantee of the country's financial stability and a strong ruble position, and its growth indicates the economic independence of the state.
