DISCLAIMER: GoldInvestors.news is not a registered investment, legal or tax advisor or broker/dealer. All investment/financial opinions expressed by GoldInvestors.news are from the personal research and experience of the owner of the site and are intended as educational material. Although best efforts are made to ensure that all information is accurate and up to date, occasionally unintended errors and misprints may occur.

Russia sold 200,000 troy ounces of gold in September, equal to 6.2 tons, according to the latest figures released by the Bank of Russia. The transaction extended a prolonged reduction in the country’s official bullion stockpile.

The September sales lowered Russia’s sovereign gold holdings to 72.8 million troy ounces, or 2,264 tons. That left the nation with its smallest gold reserve since the end of 2019.

Russia is now experiencing its largest sustained drawdown in gold reserves since the financial crisis of 1998. The country has liquidated roughly 62 tons of the precious metal since December 2025 while the government struggles to finance a rapidly expanding federal budget deficit.

The Bank of Russia has reduced its gold holdings for 10 consecutive months. That retreat represents a sharp reversal from the accumulation strategy Moscow followed before its full scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Military and security expenses are projected to consume 38% of total federal spending in 2026. The continued gold sales come as those costs place pressure on the government’s finances and the federal budget deficit grows.

Russia’s remaining gold holdings were valued at approximately $301.6 billion at the end of September. One month earlier, the reserve had been worth $333.5 billion.

The reduction in the reserve’s stated value occurred during a period of significant movement in gold markets. Spot gold prices have risen nearly 43% over the last 12 months, according to the source figures.

Russia has also been sending more precious metals to China. Bloomberg reported in July that the value of Russian precious metals exports to China nearly doubled during the first half of 2025.

“Chinese imports of Russian precious metal ores and concentrates, including gold and silver, jumped 80% to $1 billion from the same period a year earlier,” Bloomberg reported at the time, citing data from Trade Data Monitor and China’s customs office. “Bullion prices have climbed about 28% this year, boosted by heightened geopolitical risks and trade tensions, alongside buying by central banks and exchange-traded funds.”

Although Russia’s gold exports to China increased in volume, rising bullion prices also accounted for much of the difference in value. The nearly 43% advance in spot prices over the last 12 months increased the value attached to those metal flows.

Russia remains the world’s number two gold producer, behind China, with annual production exceeding 300 tons. Its central bank had also ranked among the world’s largest sovereign gold buyers before purchases declined following the full scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

The People’s Bank of China, by comparison, continues to rank among the leading central bank gold buyers of recent years. China is therefore prominent in the figures both as Russia’s largest referenced precious metals customer and as an active official sector buyer.

Russia’s miners are also supplying stronger retail demand inside the country. Domestic purchases reached a record level in 2024 as Russian consumers sought precious metals to protect the value of their savings.

Russian consumers bought 75.6 tons of gold during 2024. That amount represented approximately 25% of Russia’s annual gold production, highlighting the scale of domestic demand alongside increasing exports to China.

The latest reserve figures show these market forces unfolding while official holdings continue to contract. Ten consecutive monthly reductions have brought Russia’s sovereign stockpile down to 2,264 tons, even as bullion prices, Chinese imports, and Russian retail demand have climbed.

DISCLAIMER: GoldInvestors.news is not a registered investment, legal or tax advisor or broker/dealer. All investment/financial opinions expressed by GoldInvestors.news are from the personal research and experience of the owner of the site and are intended as educational material. Although best efforts are made to ensure that all information is accurate and up to date, occasionally unintended errors and misprints may occur.