List of countries by foreign-exchange reserves

Foreign-exchange reserves (also called Forex reserves) in a strict sense are only the foreign-currency deposits held by central banks and monetary authorities. However, the term foreign-exchange reserves in popular usage (such as this list) commonly includes foreign exchange and gold, Special Drawing Rights (SDRs])and International Monetary Fund (IMF) reserve position as this total figure is more readily available, however it is accurately deemed as official reserves or international reserves. The list excludes currency swaps conducted by central banks.

These are assets of the central banks which are held in different reserve currencies such as the U.S. dollar, euro, yen and pound, and which are used to back its liabilities, e.g., the local currency issued, and the various bank reserves deposited with the central bank, by the government or financial institutions. Before the end of the gold standard, gold was the preferred reserve. Some nations are converting foreign exchange reserves into sovereign wealth funds, which can rival foreign exchange reserves in size.

This is a list of countries and territories by foreign exchange reserves in U.S. dollar equivalence. Some nations have multiple monetary authorities, counted separately, such as the People's Republic of China, which has three (mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau). Exchange rate fluctuations can have significant impact on these numbers. While most nations report in US dollars, a few nations in Eastern Europe report solely in Euros.

Contents

List of states by foreign-exchange reserves

The list below is based on IMF data – when available; Otherwise – U.S. Central Intelligence Agency data are indicated. For consistency, forward currency swap contracts are not included in this list until they mature, figures that include them may be higher or lower than those listed here. IMF or other outstanding loans are not shown here, and if accounted for many nations would list lower.

Rank Country/monetary authority Foreign exchange reserves
(Millions of US$)		 Figures as of
—  World (sum of all countries) N/A –
1  People's Republic of China
3,197,000 Jun 2011[1]
2  Japan 1,137,809 Jun 2011[2]
– Eurosystem
(EU member states which have adopted the euro, incl. ECB)		 886,355 July 2011[2]
3  Russia 510,910 Dec 2011[3]
4  Saudi Arabia 456,200 Dec 2010[1]
5  Republic of China (Taiwan) 400,770 Jul 2011[4]
6  Brazil 350,000 Sep 2011[2]
7  India 311,516 May 2011[2]
8  Republic of Korea 305,084 May 2011[2]
9  Switzerland 288,590 May 2011[2]
– Hong Kong 277,206 Jun 2011[2]
10  Singapore 242,287 Jun 2011[2]
11  Germany 230,879 Jun 2011[2]
12  Algeria 200,640 Dec 2011[1]
13  Thailand 188,317 Aug 2011[2]
14  France 182,167 May 2011[2]
15  Italy 169,558 May 2011[2]
16  United States 146,585 Sep 2011[2]
17  Malaysia 135,000 Nov 2011[2]
18  Mexico 131,174 May 2011[2]
19  Indonesia 124,638 Aug 2011[2]
20  United Kingdom 114,180 Jun 2011[2]
21  Poland 109,146 Jun 2011[2]
22  Libya 168,300 Dec 2010[1]
23  Turkey 95,712 Aug 2011[2]
24  Denmark 93,225 Aug 2011[2]
– European Central Bank
(ECB, not owned by any single EU member)		 79,142 May 2011[2]
25  Israel 78,031 Aug 2011[2]
26  Philippines 76,351 Nov 2011[2]
27  Iran 75,060 Dec 2010[1]
28  Canada 63,718 Sep 2011[2]
29  Norway 51,700 Aug 2011[2]
30  Romania 54,738 Jun 2011[2]
31  Hungary 53,480 Jun 2011[2]
32  Argentina 51,695 Jun 2011[2]
33  Sweden 50,922 May 2011[2]
34  Netherlands 50,408 Jun 2011[2]
35  South Africa 50,041 Jun 2011[2]
36  Peru 48,874 Sep 2011[2]
37  Iraq 45,680 Dec 2010[1]
38  Nigeria 43,360 Dec 2010[1]
39  Czech Republic 43,230 Jun 2011[2]
40  Australia 41,869 Apr 2011[2]
41  Lebanon 41,570 Dec 2010[1]
42  United Arab Emirates 39,100 Dec 2010[1]
43  Ukraine 37,918 May 2011[2]
44  Kazakhstan 36,006 May 2011[2]
45  Chile 34,884 Jun 2011[2]
46  Spain 33,922 Jun 2011[2]
47  Colombia 30,427 May 2011[2]
48  Venezuela 29,490 Dec 2010[1]
49  Belgium 28,848 Jun 2011[2]
50  Egypt 27,812 May 2011[2]
51  Austria 24,804 Jun 2011[2]
52  Morocco 23,638 May 2011[2]
54  Kuwait 22,420 Dec 2010[1]
55  Qatar 22,410 Dec 2010[1]
53  Portugal 22,285 May 2011[2]
56  New Zealand 21,662 May 2011[2]
57  Vietnam 19,200 Jan 2011[1]
58 Macau 18,730 Mar 2010[5]
59  Pakistan 17,790 Sep 2011[6]
60  Bulgaria 17,614 May 2011[2]
61  Croatia 16,276 May 2011[2]
62  Serbia 14,411 Jun 2011[7]
63  Jordan 12,495 Apr 2011[2]
64  Bangladesh 10,790 Dec 2010[1]
65  Finland 10,866 May 2011[2]
65  Trinidad and Tobago 9,659 Dec 2010[1]
66  Bolivia 12,100 Dec 2011
67  Uruguay 8,733 May 2011[2]
68  Latvia 7,861 Jun 2011[2]
69  Tunisia 7,804 Jun 2011[2]
70  Lithuania 7,092 Jun 2011[2]
71  Iceland 7,230 Jun 2011[2]
72  Greece 6,839 Jun 2011[2]
73  Guatemala 6,417 May 2011[2]
74  Azerbaijan 6,330 Dec 2010[1]
75  Sri Lanka 5,630 Dec 2010[1]
76  Costa Rica 4,650 May 2011[2]
77  Dominican Republic 4,397 Jun 2011[1]
78  Belarus 4,151 Jun 2011[2]
79  Paraguay 4,082 Dec 2010[1]
80  Cambodia 3,840 Dec 2010[1]
81  Myanmar 3,762 Dec 2010[1]
82  El Salvador 3,323 May 2011[2]
83  Honduras 3,036 May 2011[2]
84  Georgia 2,759 Jun 2011[2]
85  Slovakia 2,409 May 2011[2]
86 Ireland 2,108 May 2011[2]
87  Kyrgyzstan 1,909 Jun 2011[2]
88  Moldova 1,901 Jun 2011[2]
89  Nicaragua 1,786 Jun 2011[2]
90  Armenia 1,708 May 2011[2]
91  Cyprus 1,235 Apr 2011[2]
92  Slovenia 1,081 Jun 2011[2]
93  Luxembourg 1,032 May 2011[2]
94  Laos 576 Dec 2010[1]
95  Malta 595 May 2011[2]
96  Estonia 226 June 2011[2]


List of outstanding forward swap agreements

The following is a list of outstanding forward swap contracts with the Federal Reserve, Bank of Japan, People's Bank of China. They are not included in foreign exchange reserves, but can bolster the reserves when credit is taken out, and reduce the reserves when credit expires. The Fed has extended its credit deadline to Oct. 30, 2009 for those nations listed below. Japan's deadlines are April 30, 2009, but may be extended. China's table list below are a lines of credit, and does not show actual withdrawals, and are valid for 3 years.

Rank Country/monetary authority Foreign exchange swap with Fed
(millions of USD)		 As of
1 European Central Bank −264,100 Nov 2008
2  Japan −97,000 Nov 2008
3  United Kingdom −54,300 Nov 2009
4  Brazil −30,000 Dec 2008
5  Mexico −30,000 Dec 2008
6  Republic of Korea −30,000 Dec 2008
7  Sweden −25,000 Nov 2008
8  Australia −21,600 Nov 2008
9  Switzerland −20,800 Nov 2008
10  Denmark −15,000 Nov 2008
Rank Country/Monetary Authority Foreign exchange swap with BOJ
(millions of USD)		 Figures as of
1  Republic of Korea −70,000 Oct 2011
2  Indonesia −12,000 Feb 2009
3  Thailand −6,000 Dec 2008
3  Philippines −6,000 Dec 2008
5  Malaysia −3,000 Dec 2008
5  India −3,000 Dec 2008
Rank Country/Monetary Authority Swap credit line with PBC[8]
(millions of Yuan)		 Issue date
1  Republic of Korea −357,000 Oct 2011
2  Hong Kong −180,000 Dec 2008
3  Singapore −150,000 Jul 2010
4  Indonesia −100,000 Mar 2009
5  Malaysia −80,000 Feb 2009
6  Argentina −70,000 Mar 2009
7  Belarus −20,000 Feb 2009

See also

Notes

  • ^ Iranian government does not report the foreign exchange reserves as a matter of policy and all figures are estimates calculated by international or foreign institutes which are occasionally endorsed by Iranian officials without disclosing the exact numbers.

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v "The World Fact Book, reserves of foreign exchange and gold". CIA. 2010-12-31. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2188rank.html. Retrieved 2011-02-12. 
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af ag ah ai aj ak al am an ao ap aq ar as at au av aw ax ay az ba bb bc bd be bf bg bh bi bj bk bl bm bn bo bp bq br bs bt "Data Template on International Reserves and Foreign Currency Liquidity – Reporting Countries". Imf.org. 2001-01-05. http://www.imf.org/external/np/sta/ir/IRProcessWeb/colist.aspx. Retrieved 2010-07-08. 
  3. ^ Bank of Russia
  4. ^ Central Bank of the Republic of China (Taiwan) — Foreign Exchange Reserves as at the End of July 2011
  5. ^ http://www.macaudailytimes.com.mo/macau/6429-Foreign-exchange-reserves.html
  6. ^ http://www.dawn.com/2011/09/15/pakistani-forex-reserves-fall-to-17-79-bln.html
  7. ^ Devizne rezerve NBS 10 mlrd. €
  8. ^ Bloomberg:China, Indonesia in 100 Billion Yuan Currency Swap

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