Iran relying on gold reserves to prevent forex shocks amid imposed war: Expert
Iran can rely on its huge gold reserves to withstand potential economic shocks arising from the ongoing Israeli aggression against the country, according to an economic expert.
Hassan Hassan Khani said on Sunday that Iran had imported more than 100 metric tons (mt) of gold in the calendar year to March to beef up its reserves.
He added that the country’s gold reserves have enhanced its ability to stabilize foreign currency prices and prevent forex shocks that can normally be caused by foreign sanctions and wars.
"In the current situation of the sanctions and the war, … such amount of gold can serve as a major tool to stabilize the markets," he was quoted as saying by the Fars news agency.
Iranian customs office figures show that gold accounted for nearly 20% or more than $8 billion worth of imports into Iran in the year to late March.
The Central Bank of Iran (CBI) said in March that the country was among the top five gold-buying nations of the world, saying that the lender had converted some 20% of its reserves to gold.
The surge in gold imports last calendar year came after the government cut imports tariffs on the bullion to zero to boost the country's reserves and to facilitate the return of funds held in other countries because of US sanctions.
The CBI has held several rounds of auctions to sell gold inside Iran in a bid to boost its rial holdings.
The lender said in March that it had sold a total of 17.845 mt of gold worth more than 1,000 trillion rials ($1.1 billion) during auctions held since mid-January.
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