INTEREST ARTICLE

TOPIC: Australia’s Missing Gold Reserves

Australia is a country that is rich in natural resources, from iron ore and coal to natural
gas and gold. In fact, Australia is the second-largest gold producer in the world, with
large reserves of the precious metal located in various parts of the country. However,
there is one curious fact that has been making headlines recently: Australia's reserve
gold has not been seen in a long time.

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is the custodian of Australia's gold reserves, which
are stored in a secure vault at the RBA's head office in Sydney. The vault is said to hold
around 80 tonnes of gold, worth billions of dollars. However, there is growing concern
among some Australians that the gold may not actually be there.

The RBA claims that the gold is audited regularly to ensure that it is still in the vault and
that there has been no loss or theft. However, there has not been a physical audit of the
gold reserves since 2013. This has led to speculation that the gold may have been sold
or moved to another location, such as a foreign country.

This speculation has been fueled by the fact that Australia has been selling off its gold
reserves in recent years. In 2016, the RBA sold off 22 tonnes of gold, and in 2018, it sold
off another 15 tonnes. This has led some to wonder whether the gold that is supposed to
be in the vault is actually still there or whether it has been sold off and replaced with
IOUs.

The RBA has dismissed these claims, stating that the gold is still in the vault and that it
is regularly audited to ensure its security. The bank has also stated that it has no plans
to sell off any more of its gold reserves in the near future.

Despite the reassurances from the RBA, many Australians remain skeptical about the
whereabouts of the country's reserve gold. Some have called for a full and transparent
audit of the gold reserves to be conducted, to put the rumors to rest once and for all.

Others have pointed out that Australia's gold reserves are not actually necessary for the
country's economy. Unlike some other countries, such as China and the United States,
Australia does not use its gold reserves to back its currency. Instead, the gold is seen as
a store of value and a symbol of the country's wealth.

Regardless of whether the gold is actually in the vault or not, it is clear that Australia's
reserve gold has not been seen in a long time. Whether this is cause for concern or not
remains to be seen, but it is certainly an interesting topic of conversation for Australians
who are interested in the country's natural resources and economy.