The Central government has refuted allegations that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) sold a substantial amount of its gold reserves to protect foreign currency assets during West Asia tensions. This response follows a report by Bloomberg Economics suggesting a potential $12 billion gold offload by the RBI amidst Iran-US conflict uncertainties in West Asia. However, the government’s fact-checking body, the Press Information Bureau (PIB), clarified that official RBI data indicates a consistent rise in India’s gold share within foreign exchange reserves, contradicting the claim of significant sales.
Official figures from the RBI show a continuous increase in the proportion of gold in India’s foreign exchange reserves, climbing from 13.92% in September 2025 to 16.70% by March 31, 2026, and further to 16.85% as of May 22, 2026, as highlighted by the PIB’s Fact Check Unit. The government emphasized that the RBI routinely discloses information on its physical gold holdings through its Monthly Bulletin and affirmed that the gold stock status remains unaltered.
The government also highlighted that the RBI transparently reports its physical gold holdings in the Monthly Bulletin, with the latest edition available on the RBI website, confirming no changes in the current status. Dismissing claims made in the Bloomberg report, which suggested a $12 billion gold sale by the RBI alongside a $7.5 billion purchase of foreign-currency assets in the two weeks ending May 22, the Central government pointed to the official reserve data released by the RBI.
