.jpg?20260726')
SAUDI Arabia’s official reserve assets rose 8.06 per cent from a year earlier to 1.85 trillion riyals ($494.55 billion) at the end of June, driven by higher foreign currency reserves, official data showed, reports the Arab News.
On a monthly basis, the kingdom’s official reserve assets increased by 1.28pc during June, up by 23.44bn riyals from their value at the end of May, which stood at 1.83trn riyals, according to data released by the Saudi Central Bank.
The kingdom’s reserve position remains among the largest in the Middle East, providing a substantial buffer against external shocks stemming from recent regional geopolitical conflicts and reinforcing investor confidence in the Saudi economy amid ongoing global economic uncertainty.
Total reserve assets include monetary gold, foreign currency reserves, special drawing rights, the reserve position with the International Monetary Fund, and other reserve assets.
SAMA’s data showed that the value of foreign currency reserves rose 8.7pc year on year to 1.76trn riyals at the end of June, compared with 1.62trn riyals 12 months earlier.
In contrast, the value of SDRs declined 3.3pc to 78.64bn riyals over the year.
The reserve position with the IMF stood at 13.22bn riyals, slightly lower than the 13.28bn riyals seen in June 2025.
The value of monetary gold remained unchanged at 1.62bn riyals at the end of June, according to SAMA data. Saudi Arabia’s steady monetary gold holdings stand in contrast to a broader global wave of central bank accumulation.
Central banks worldwide bought a net 244 tonnes of gold in the first quarter of 2026, according to the World Gold Council, extending one of the strongest sovereign buying cycles in decades, with gold prices reaching a quarterly average record of roughly $4,873 per ounce after reaching an all-time high of $5,405 per ounce in January.
&uuid=(email))