By Tuba Sahin
ANKARA (AA) – Official reserves of the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey (CBRT) totaled nearly $98.4 billion as of June 29, the bank reported on Friday.
Total reserve assets slipped 8.3 percent, compared to $107.3 billion at the end of May, according to the bank's international reserves and foreign currency liquidity report.
Last month, foreign currency reserves — in convertible foreign currencies — amounted to $74 billion, down 8.9 percent on a monthly basis.
CBRT's gold reserves — including gold deposits and, if appropriate, gold swapped — also dropped by 6.8 percent to $22.8 billion in June compared to May.
On a yearly basis, the bank's official reserves saw a decline of 9 percent, versus $108.7 billion at the end of June 2017.
In mid-December 2013, the bank's total reserves hit their all-time peak at nearly $136 billion, including some $21 billion in gold reserves.
– Liability side
The bank also reported that short-term predetermined net drains of the central government and the Central Bank — foreign currency loans, securities, and foreign exchange deposit accounts of residents abroad within the bank — slightly decreased 0.4 percent in June on a monthly basis, standing at $10.7 billion.
“Of this amount, $6.5 billion belongs to principal repayments and $4.2 billion to interest repayments ” the bank said.
The bank noted that contingent short-term net drains on foreign currency amounted to $58.5 billion last month, falling 6.2 percent compared to May.
According to the bank's definition, contingent short-term net drains on foreign currency consist of “collateral guarantees on debt due within one year” and “other contingent liabilities, ” which are the banking sector’s required reserves in blocked accounts in foreign currency and gold, and letters of credit items on the Central Bank’s balance sheet.
