According to the Central Bank data, Uzbekistan's gold and currency reserves decreased by 1.7 billion dollars in the last 3 months.
At the press conference held at the Central Bank on July 27, the Kun.uz reporter asked to clarify the possibility that the reduction of official reserves is related to the support of the state budget through the Recovery and Development Fund. The CB Chairman Mamarizo Nurmurodov said that this is not the case.
"We buy gold at the world market price, at the exchange rate on the day the gold was received by us. We do not transfer gold funds to the Recovery and Development Fund. That is, Navoi Mining Metallurgical Combine or Almalyk Mining Metallurgical Combine, which sells gold, pays its taxes in the prescribed manner. There is no regulatory document on allocation to a separate fund, I will tell you officially. Our 2 combines that sold gold will receive 100% of the gold value from us," Nurmurodov said.
He added that the decrease in reserves for 3 months was caused by the change in the price of gold on the last day of the month.
"Because 65-68% of our currency reserves are in gold. That is, if the price rises, the stock will increase, if it falls, it will decrease.
Another reason for the decrease in stocks is the 17% increase in our imports this year. To some extent, these are funds from the budget aimed at paying gas import fees. These will have their effect," Nurmurodov said.
The Chairman of the Central Bank explained the monetary authority's policy of buying and selling gold.
"We will not buy gold at a cheap price. We calculate the daily price on the London stock exchange for a month, and we buy the average monthly price at the exchange rate on the day of delivery. As for selling gold, we try to sell when the gold price is high based on our demand. In a sense, the Central Bank needs to make a profit.
Our position in gold sales is neutral. We have identified this as one of the main principles of inflation targeting. We have to sell the gold we bought during the year at the market price," he said.
Nurmurodov said that Uzbekistan is expected to produce 107 tons of gold in 2023.
"We need to buy gold and release its equivalent currency on the market. If we buy gold and do not issue currency for the money we have issued, we will increase the money supply in the money market and increase demand inflation," the head of the Central Bank explained.
