Foreign Exchange Reserves -- Russia, Saudi Arabia, China -- China Data Updated June 22, 2026

Locator: 51033RESERVES.

Foreign exchange reserves: Russia, Saudi Arabia, China. 

Russia, link here: posted June 6, 2026: 

Saudi, link here: posted June 6, 2026: 

China, link here, posted June 22, 2026: 

Foreign Exchange Reserves -- Russia, Saudi Arabia, China -- Posted June 6, 2026

Locator: 50925STORAGE.

Locator: 50925STORAGE.

Locator: 50925STORAGE.

Foreign exchange reserves: Russia, Saudi Arabia, China. 

Russia, link here: posted June 6, 2026: 

Saudi, link here: posted June 6, 2026: 

China, link here, posted June 6, 2026: 

Foreign Exchange Reserves -- Russia, Saudi Arabia, China -- Posted March 16, 2026

Locator: 50236STORAGE.

Locator: 50236STORAGE.

Locator: 50236STORAGE.

Foreign exchange reserves: Russia, Saudi Arabia, China.

Russia, link here: posted March 16, 2026: 

Saudi, link here: posted March 16, 2026:

China, link here, posted March 16, 2026: 

Foreign Exchange Reserves -- Russia, Saudi Arabia, China -- Posted February 26, 2026

Locator: 50062SAUDI. 

Locator: 50062RUSSIA.

Locator: 50062CHINA.

Foreign exchange reserves: Russia, Saudi Arabia, China.

Russia, link here: posted February 26, 2026: 

Saudi, link here: posted February 26, 2026:

China, link here, posted February 26, 2026: 

Foreign Exchange Reserves -- Russia, Saudi Arabia, China -- Posted January 20, 2026

Locator: 49762SAUDI 

Locator: 49862CHINA.

Locator: 49862RUSSIA.  

Foreign exchange reserves: Russia, Saudi Arabia, China.

Russia, link here: posted January 20, 2026, no update since then: 

Saudi, link here: posted January 8, 2026:

China, link here, posted January 8, 2026: 

Foreign Exchange Reserves -- Russia, Saudi Arabia, China -- Posted January 8, 2026

Locator: 49838SAUDI. 

Locator: 49838CHINA.

Locator: 49838RUSSIA.  

Foreign exchange reserves: Russia, Saudi Arabia, China.

Russia, link here: posted January 20, 2026, no update since then: 

Saudi, link here: posted January 8, 2026:

China, link here, posted January 8, 2026: 

Foreign Exchange Reserves -- Russia, Saudi Arabia, China -- Posted December 23, 2025

Locator: 49736SAUDI. 

Locator: 49736CHINA.

Locator: 49736RUSSIA.  

Foreign exchange reserves: Russia, Saudi Arabia, China.

Russia, link here: posted December 23, 2025:

Saudi, link here: posted December 23, 2025:

China, link here, posted December 23, 2025: 

Foreign Exchange Reserves -- Russia, Saudi Arabia, China -- Updated November 19, 2025

Locator: 49740SAUDI. 

Locator: 49740CHINA. 

Locator: 49740RUSSIA.

Foreign exchange reserves: Russia, Saudi Arabia, China.

Russia, link here: posted November 19, 2025:

Saudi, link here: posted December 9, 2025 (Saudi alwasy the :

China, link here, posted November 19, 2025:

Foreign Exchange Reserves -- Russia, Saudi Arabia, China -- Updated November 4, 2025

Re-posting. Saudi Arabia data finally posted their September data. 

Locator: 49383SAUDI. 

Locator: 49383CHINA.

Locator: 49383RUSSIA.

Foreign exchange reserves: Russia, Saudi Arabia, China.

Russia, link here: posted October 14, 2025:

Saudi, link here: posted November 4, 2025:

China, link here, posted October 14, 2025:

Foreign Exchange Reserves -- Russia, Saudi Arabia, China -- Posted October 14, 2025

Locator: 49383SAUDI. 

Locator: 49383CHINA.

Locator: 49383RUSSIA.

Foreign exchange reserves: Russia, Saudi Arabia, China.

Russia, link here: posted October 14, 2025:

Saudi, link here: posted November 4, 2025:

China, link here, posted October 14, 2025:

Foreign Exchange Reserves -- Russia, Saudi Arabia, China -- Posted October 3, 2025

Locator: 49283SAUDI. 

Locator: 49283CHINA.

Locator: 49283RUSSIA.

Foreign exchange reserves: Russia, Saudi Arabia, China.

Russia, link here:

Saudi, link here:

China, link here, posted October 3, 2025:

Foreign Exchange Reserves -- Russia, Saudi Arabia, China -- Posted August 22, 2025

Locator: 48932SAUDI.

Locator: 48932CHINA.

Locator: 48932RUSSIA.

Foreign exchange reserves: Russia, Saudi Arabia, China.

Russia, link here:

Saudi, link here:

China, link here, posted August 22, 2025:

 

 

 

Foreign Exchange Reserves -- July, 2025, Update -- Updated August 5, 2025

Locator: 48781SAUDI.
Locator: 48790SAUDI.
Locator: 48790CHINA.
Locator: 48790RUSSIA. 

Saudi debt: link here.

Saudi Arabia Foreign Exchange Reserves. Link here.

Russia, link here. June, 2025, data:

China, link here:

Foreign Exchange Reserves -- July, 2025, Update -- Posted July 20, 2025

Locator: 48790SAUDI.

Locator: 48790CHINA.

Locator: 48790RUSSIA.

Saudi Arabia Foreign Exchange Reserves. Link here.

Russia, link here. June, 2025, data:

China, link here:

*********************
Musical Interlude 

It's amazing how well this has held up over the years.

 Heart of glass, Blondie.

Time For A Movie Interlude -- July 5, 2025

Locator: 48672MOVIE.

The Coen Brothers film rankings.

Link here.

Ethan Coen (by himself) and Honey Don't -- opens in theaters August 22, 2025; trailer here:

************************************
Iran: From July, 2025 -- The Next Decade

We're going to be overwhelmed by YouTube videos on this subject for the next year. Right, wrong, indifferent. Whether one agrees or disagrees with Trump's policies, these videos are going to be ubiquitous over the next well months. Victor Davis Hanson will probably have the best analysis.

How "the" war in Iran will completely cripple Russia. Link here.

Reminder:

Seven US B-2 bombers were used to strike Iranian nuclear facilities as part of Operation Midnight Hammer.

These bombers were tasked with delivering GBU-57 MOP bunker-busting bombs. The operation targeted the Fordow and Natanz nuclear enrichment facilities.

The U.S. Air Force has 19 B-2 Spirit stealth bombers in service. Initially, the U.S. had 21, but one was lost in a 2008 crash and another in 2022.In the operation against Iranian nuclear facilities, US B-2 bombers dropped a total of 14 GBU-57 "bunker buster" bombs. These bombs were used to target the Fordow enrichment facility and a second nuclear site. The operation, named "Midnight Hammer," also involved other precision-guided weapons like Tomahawk cruise missiles launched from submarines.

The Russian void in Iran will be filled by ... not China ... but Turkey, the US, and Saudi Arabia.

We're going to get a lot of "propaganda" that China will step in to fill the void (they won't). We will also get a lot of "propaganda" that Turkey will step in to fill the void. That's partly true, but Saudi Arabia and the US will be watching closely. The economic potential in the Mideast following the 35-minute US war on Iran will be huge for those countries rushing to fill the void left by Russia, and each will want a piece of that economic pie. My hunch: Saudi Arabia is most "needful" of that potential and won't let China step on the Muslims.

The Hormuz Strait:

• I generally disregard any analyst who raises this canard: Iran can shut down the Hormuz Strait.Fact: the Hormuz Strait has never been shut down and never will be by Iran.
• If, if, if, if --- the Hormuz Strait is shut down, "we" have bigger problems than oil in the Mideast.  
• any media outlet, particularly CNBC, that talks about the risk of the strait closing tells me that CNBC is not serious on this issue.
  

Saudi Arabia Foreign Exchange Reserves -- May, 2025, Update -- Posted July 1, 2025

Locator: 48630SAUDI.

Saudi Arabia Foreign Exchange Reserves -- just posted overnight. Link here.

Russia, link here, May data:

China, link here:

Saudi Arabia Foreign Exchange Reserves -- April, 2025, Data -- Russia's Foreign Exchange Reserves -- May, 2025, Data -- Posted June 6, 2025

Locator: 48695SAUDI.

Link here.

Russia, link here, May data:

China, link here:

Russia’s Wealth Fund Drops Almost $6 Billion Month Over Month — At This Rate Of Cash Burn, Russia's Wealth Fund Is Zero -- Charles Kennedy — June 4, 2025

Locator: 48682RUSSIA.

Link here.

Russia’s National Wealth Fund, a rainy-day reserves fund, saw its liquid assets drop by the equivalent of nearly $6 billion in May, data from the Russian finance ministry showed on Wednesday. The National Wealth Fund had its readily available liquid assets drop by $5.75 billion (453.8 billion Russian rubles) in May, and the total value dropped to $35.5 billion (2.8 trillion rubles). The National Wealth Fund’s liquid assets have plunged by 68% since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Bloomberg has estimated.

At this rate of cash burn, the NWF will be depleted by the end of this year (2025).

Everything suggests Putin is betting the entire country on his obsession with Ukraine. One truly has to ask whether he is sane by the usual hallmarks of sanity.

National Wealth Fund (NWF) Vs Russia's foreign exchange reserves:

In Russia, the National Wealth Fund (NWF) and foreign exchange reserves serve different but complementary economic purposes. Here’s a breakdown of the key differences:

1. Purpose

• National Wealth Fund (NWF): 
• Designed as a sovereign wealth fund to support long-term fiscal stability, fund budget deficits, and support pensions. 
• It’s essentially a savings fund from oil and gas revenues. 
• Foreign Reserves (Central Bank reserves): 
• Managed by the Central Bank of Russia, these are held to stabilize the ruble, manage balance of payments, and back up monetary policy. 
• Think of it as Russia’s rainy-day fund for defending the currency and managing external debt.

2. Management

• NWF: 
• Managed by the Russian Ministry of Finance.
• Foreign Reserves: 
• Managed by the Central Bank of Russia independently from the government.

3. Composition

• NWF: 
• Composed mainly of oil and gas revenues, and investments (in foreign currencies, gold, and sometimes domestic projects). 
• After 2022 sanctions, it’s increasingly held in Chinese yuan, gold, and ruble assets. 
• Foreign Reserves: 
• Includes a broader basket of assets: 
• Foreign currencies (USD, EUR, yuan, etc.) 
• Gold 
• Special Drawing Rights (SDRs) 
• MF reserve positions
• Highly liquid foreign government bonds 

4. Liquidity and Use

• NWF: 
• Can be tapped by the government to cover budget deficits. 
• Can invest in domestic projects (e.g., infrastructure, state companies). 
• More political discretion in its use. 
• Foreign Reserves
• Used for currency interventions to stabilize the ruble.
• Supports monetary and financial stability. • Not usually used directly for government spending. 

5. Size (as of mid-2024 estimates) 

• NWF: Around $148 billion (equivalent), though a portion is illiquid. 
• Foreign Reserves: Around $580 billion, though about half were frozen by Western sanctions after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.

NWF: note mid-2024 estimate and May, 2025, estimate.

    mid-2024: $148 billion
    May, 2025: $35.5 billion (76% of it value one year earlier)

Russia Foreign Exchange Reserves -- April, 2025, Data -- May 23, 2025

Locator: 48663RUSSIA.

Link here.