MOSCOW, February 6 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's
international reserves, comprising gold, foreign exchange and a
range of other assets, dropped $40.18 billion in January to
$387.89 billion, the Central Bank said on Friday.
The Central Bank said the decrease in the country's
reserves was caused by the bank selling foreign currency to
prop up the ruble and ensure a gradual depreciation amid
capital outflow due to the global financial crisis and
declining global oil prices.
Sergei Shvetsov, the head of the Central Bank's financial
markets department, said the bank sold some $35 billion in
January.
In addition, the bank said the negative revaluation of
reserves as a result of the U.S. dollar's growth against the
euro and the British pound had also resulted in a decrease.
Apart from foreign currency and gold, Russia's
international reserves are also composed of special drawing
rights (SDRs), a reserve position in the International Monetary
Fund (IMF) and other assets.
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