The price of gold has soared by a third since the end of 2023, approaching a record $2,750 an ounce. The main driver of growth was purchases of the precious metal by central banks. The share of gold in their assets rose to 11% from 6% in 2008. This was stated by the British The Economist.
Dependence on the dollar became dangerous when the US and its allies froze Russia’s sovereign assets of $280bn and disconnected Russian banks from SWIFT due to the outbreak of the conflict in Ukraine. Shifting assets from dollars to gold became a defence against potential economic wars for the world’s central banks.
‘The power given to the dollar by its reserve currency status is falling. More and more countries conduct transactions without going through the US banking system – sanctions are becoming less and less effective,’ wrote The Economist.
Recall, earlier Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian at a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin assessed the possibility of neutralising the sanctions measures imposed by the United States against Moscow and Tehran.
