The Wall Street Journal: Gold Is the Real Rival to the Dollar's Reserve Status
Article by Chelsey Dulaney in The Wall Street Journal
Central banks snapped up gold at a record pace last year, putting the safe-haven metal ahead of the euro as the second-most popular reserve asset.
A report issued Wednesday by the European Central Bank highlighted the shifts underway in the portfolios of global central banks. Reserve managers bought 1,000 metric tons of gold, double the pace of the previous decade. A price rally also helped lift gold's portion of total reserves to 20%.
Central banks have pared back dollar holdings in recent years, with the currency's share of all reserve assets falling to 46% last year.
Financial sanctions imposed on Russia, which saw some $300 billion of central-bank assets frozen in 2022, showed how dollar assets can be used as a weapon.
In addition to gold, central banks have also invested more in .....