Gold has been rising since 2001 and its near vertical rise over the last two years helps explain some of the recent fascination, but political actions have Helped as well. In the United States, Rep. Ron Paul and others have called for a return to the gold standard. Elsewhere, Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez recently nationalized his country’s gold industries, and some analysts have said countries should dip into their gold reserves to alleviate the sovereign debt crisis. With all these recent stories, we wanted to see which countries actually have the most gold in their reserves, based on information from the World Gold Council.
Venezuela Tonnes: 322.9 % of reserves: 60.8%
#10: India
The world’s second most populous country barely made the top 10 list…[even though it] consumes more gold than any other Tonnes: 557.7 % of reserves: 8.7%
#9: Netherlands Although known for being a fairly liberal society, the Netherlands is fairly conservative in its financial reserves… Tonnes: 612.5 % of reserves: 58.9%
#8: Japan Gold only constitutes a very small percentage of Japan’s overall reserves. Like another Asian country on this list, Japan holds a significant number of U.S. dollars in its reserves… Tonnes: 765.2 % of reserves: 3.3%
#7: Russia As the world’s number five gold producing nation, Russia’s gold reserves have grown significantly over the last couple years… Tonnes: 836.7 % of reserves: 7.7%
#6: Switzerland Beyond watches, chocolate and pocket knives, Switzerland is best known as a financial center… Tonnes: 1,040.1 % of reserves: 17.8%
#5: China [Although China is] the world’s most populous nation…[its] gold holdings are only 1.6% of its total reserves…[given the fact that] it has more than $3 trillion in U.S. dollars in its reserve. Tonnes: 1,054.1 % of reserves: 1.6%
#4: France The French National Bank, Banque De France, is home to the country’s gold holdings… Tonnes: 2,435.4 % of reserves: 66.2%
#3: Italy Italy is the only top 10 country to also make the prestigious “PIIGS” list of Eurozone countries with sovereign debt problems (Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Greece and Spain), although Portugal just missed the list at number 12… Tonnes: 2,451.8 % of reserves: 71.2%
#2: Germany The largest economy in the Eurozone also has the largest reserve of gold… Tonnes: 3,401.0 % of reserves: 71.4%
#1: United States The United States holds nearly 30% of the 27,372.6 tonnes of gold in all sovereign reserves. Although Fort Knox is the iconic location of U.S. gold, more gold actually is stored in the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s underground vault, although not all of it belongs to the U.S. government Tonnes: 8,133.5 % of reserves: 74.2%
Venezuela Tonnes: 322.9 % of reserves: 60.8%
#10: India
The world’s second most populous country barely made the top 10 list…[even though it] consumes more gold than any other Tonnes: 557.7 % of reserves: 8.7%
#9: Netherlands Although known for being a fairly liberal society, the Netherlands is fairly conservative in its financial reserves… Tonnes: 612.5 % of reserves: 58.9%
#8: Japan Gold only constitutes a very small percentage of Japan’s overall reserves. Like another Asian country on this list, Japan holds a significant number of U.S. dollars in its reserves… Tonnes: 765.2 % of reserves: 3.3%
#7: Russia As the world’s number five gold producing nation, Russia’s gold reserves have grown significantly over the last couple years… Tonnes: 836.7 % of reserves: 7.7%
#6: Switzerland Beyond watches, chocolate and pocket knives, Switzerland is best known as a financial center… Tonnes: 1,040.1 % of reserves: 17.8%
#5: China [Although China is] the world’s most populous nation…[its] gold holdings are only 1.6% of its total reserves…[given the fact that] it has more than $3 trillion in U.S. dollars in its reserve. Tonnes: 1,054.1 % of reserves: 1.6%
#4: France The French National Bank, Banque De France, is home to the country’s gold holdings… Tonnes: 2,435.4 % of reserves: 66.2%
#3: Italy Italy is the only top 10 country to also make the prestigious “PIIGS” list of Eurozone countries with sovereign debt problems (Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Greece and Spain), although Portugal just missed the list at number 12… Tonnes: 2,451.8 % of reserves: 71.2%
#2: Germany The largest economy in the Eurozone also has the largest reserve of gold… Tonnes: 3,401.0 % of reserves: 71.4%
#1: United States The United States holds nearly 30% of the 27,372.6 tonnes of gold in all sovereign reserves. Although Fort Knox is the iconic location of U.S. gold, more gold actually is stored in the Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s underground vault, although not all of it belongs to the U.S. government Tonnes: 8,133.5 % of reserves: 74.2%
