According to provisional data, as of 1 August 2013 Belarus’ gold and foreign exchange reserves totaled the equivalent of $7,916.3 million in line with standards of the International Monetary Fund, down by $101.3 million in July 2013, representatives of the Information and Public Relations Office of the National Bank of the Republic of Belarus told BelTA.

In national terms the gold and foreign exchange reserves amounted to the equivalent of $8,554.8 million as of 1 August 2013, down by $77.8 million.

“The reduction of the gold and foreign exchange reserves has been influenced by the repayment of external and internal obligations in foreign currency in full by the government and the National Bank of Belarus. In July 2013 the volume of the gold and foreign exchange reserves was kept up thanks to rising prices for gold on the international market of precious metals,” BelTA has been told.

In IMF terms Belarus’ gold and foreign exchange reserves amounted to the equivalent of $8,095 million as of 1 January 2013. In national terms the reserves stood at $8,763.1 million. There are plans to raise the international reserve assets by $300-700 million for the sake of ensuring the national economic security in 2013.