MOSCOW, May 5 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's international reserves increased by 24.2% to $226.413 billion as of May 1 from $182.240 billion at the beginning of the year, the Central Bank of Russia said Friday.
The Central Bank said its foreign currency reserves in the same period had grown by 11.8% to $153.291 bln and gold reserves by 24.3% to $7.892 bln. Reserve assets consisting of reverse repos with nonresidents stood at 65.021 bln, up 68% in four months. The bank also reported $202 mln in IMF reserve position, and $7 mln in special drawing rights (SDRs).
Since January 1 2006, the CBR has calculated its gold reserves based on the market rate. The bank had previously used a fixed price of $300 per troy ounce. The current international gold price is $592 per troy ounce.
