Spain Hesitates on Gold Repatriation Amid Shifting Global Order

Spain's central bank is facing a dilemma about what to do with its gold reserves deposited at the US Federal Reserve. The world order is shifting, and European central banks are repatriating their gold reserves held in the United States. The Netherlands made this public last week, while France and Germany have already taken steps in this direction.

The main reason for Spain's hesitation is not just Donald Trump's presidency but also the freezing of Russian assets abroad as part of the sanctions program over the invasion of Ukraine in 2022. This event set off alarm bells in non-aligned countries, leading them to consider repatriating their gold reserves.

Spain holds a significant amount of gold, with 9 million troy ounces (281 tons) valued at around €33.2 billion ($38.56 billion). However, the Bank of Spain is secretive about where exactly this gold is located, only revealing that it is stored in its Gold Chamber and possibly other locations, including the Bank for International Settlements in Basel, the Bank of England, and New York.

Luis Garvía, a professor at the Instituto de Estudios Bursátiles (IEB), believes that bringing the gold back to Spain would be part of the European Union's strategic autonomy framework. Santiago Carbó, chair professor at the CUNEF university in Madrid, thinks a concerted Eurosystem action would be more appropriate than abrupt repatriations.