Gold Reserve Levels at World's Central Banks Steady: World Gold Council

Gold reserve levels at the world's central banks are holding steady, the World Gold Council reported Monday.

Thailand reported an increase in its gold reserves of 9.3 metric tons in August, raising its total gold holdings to 136.9 tons, the WGC said. This follows an acquisition of 28 tons in the first half of the year.

Bolivia reported an increase of seven tons in its gold reserves. The last acquisition Bolivia reported was in December 2010 when it also reported a seven-ton increase.

Finally, Russia continues to regularly add gold to its reserves, adding eight tons between July and August.

Also during this period, the Philippines and Sri Lanka reported reductions in gold reserves of 10.3 and 9.3 tons, respectively. The Philippines buys locally produced gold and may sell or retain gold for its reserves. Sri Lanka's sale is most likely related to trading activity as it has been actively buying and selling gold since 2009.

The latest statistics show no significant selling by the signatory central banks in Year 3 of the third Central Bank Gold Agreement.

In this update, the Europe Central Bank reported the sale of 181 million euros or approximately 4.6 tons of gold, which reflected the sale of gold commemorative coins by one Eurozone central bank.