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This article was first published 11 years ago

20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves

Last updated on: April 25, 2013 09:04 IST


Photographs: Nguyen Huy Kham/Reuters.

India is among the top 10 nations in terms of foreign exchange reserves.

Foreign exchange reserves, often taken as a yardstick to gauge a country's financial strength, are the foreign currency deposits and bonds held by central banks or monetary authorities (it is the Reserve Bank in the case of India).

Forex reserves include a country's gold holdings and convertible foreign currencies held in its banks, including special drawing rights and exchange reserve balances, with the International Monetary Fund.

Click NEXT to see the top 20 countries with highest foreign exchange reserves...


20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves

Image: China
Photographs: Reuters.

China (Rank 1)

Foreign exchange reserves: $3.31 trillion
(As of Dec 2012)

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20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves

Image: An elementary school boy holds a Japanese traditional calculating tool called the soroban (abacus).
Photographs: Issei Kato /Reuters.
Japan (Rank 2)

Foreign exchange reserves: $1.25 trillion
(As of Feb 2013)

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20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves

Image: Kingdom Centre, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Photographs: BroadArrow/Wikimedia Commons.

Saudi Arabia (Rank 3)

Foreign exchange reserves: $626.80 billion
(As of Dec 2012)

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20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves

Image: Moscow
Photographs: Reuters.

Russia (Rank 4)

Foreign exchange reserves: $527.70 billion
(As of March 2013)

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20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves


Photographs: Reuters.
Switzerland (Rank 5)

Foreign exchange reserves: $522.18 billion
(As of Feb 2013)

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20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves

Image: People visit a giant replica of Lemuel Gulliver built in a park in central Taiwan's city of Taichung.
Photographs: Ralph Jennings/Reuters.

Taiwan (Rank 6)

Foreign exchange reserves: $403.17 billion
(As of Dec 2012)

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20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves


Photographs: Reuters.
Brazil (Rank 7)

Foreign exchange reserves: $376.93 billion
(As of Mar 2013)

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20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves

Image: A bank employee counts one hundred dollar notes at a bank in Seoul.
Photographs: Lee Jae Won/Reuters.

Republic of Korea (Rank 8)

Foreign exchange reserves: $327.39 billion
(As of Feb 2013)

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20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves

Image: Bank of China tower and Cheung Kong Centre tower in Hong Kong's central district.
Photographs: Reuters.
Hong Kong (Rank 9)

Foreign exchange reserves: $304.77 billion
(As of Feb 2013)

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20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves


Photographs: Reuters.

India (Rank 10)

Foreign exchange reserves: $290.91 billion
(As of Feb 2013)

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20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves

Image: Tourists stand at a promenade across the water from the Marina Bay Sands integrated resort in Singapore.
Photographs: Vivek Prakash/Reuters.

Singapore (Rank 11)

Foreign exchange reserves: $259.13 billion
(As of Feb 2013)

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20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves


Photographs: Reuters.

Germany (Rank 12)

Foreign exchange reserves: $240.55 billion
(As of Feb 2013)

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20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves

Image: Algiers.
Photographs: Poudou99/Wikimedia Commons.

Algeria (Rank 13)

Foreign exchange reserves: $190.50 billion
(As of Dec 2012)

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20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves

Image: View of Bangkok.
Photographs: Wikimedia Commons.

Thailand (Rank 14)

Foreign exchange reserves: $179.27 billion
(As of Feb 2013)

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20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves

Image: Eiffel Tower, Paris.
Photographs: Reuters.

France (Rank 15)

Foreign exchange reserves: $179.24 billion
(As of Feb 2013)

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20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves

Image: A view of Milan.

Italy (Rank 16)

Foreign exchange reserves: $175.58 billion
(As of Feb 2013)

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20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves

Image: Mexico City, Mexico.
Photographs: Wikimedia Commons.

Mexico (Rank 17)

Foreign exchange reserves: $171.25 billion
(As of Jan 2013)

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20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves

Image: The US Capitol dome in Washington.
Photographs: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters.

United States (Rank 18)

Foreign exchange reserves: $148.03 billion
(As of Mar 2013)

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20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves


Photographs: Reuters.

Malaysia (Rank 19)

Foreign exchange reserves: $140.30 billion
(As of Feb 2013)

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20 countries with the largest foreign exchange reserves

Image: Tripoli.
Photographs: Wikimedia Commons.

Libya (Rank 20)


Foreign exchange reserves: $130.30 billion
(As of Dec 2012)


Tags: Libya