The euro area current account recorded a €9 billion surplus in August 2026, down €18 billion from the previous month. Over the 12 months to August 2026, the surplus totalled €250 billion (1.5% of euro area GDP), down from €290 billion (1.8%) a year earlier, mainly due to a smaller goods surplus (down from €320 billion to €290 billion) and a larger secondary income deficit. Euro area residents made net direct investments of €424 billion in non-euro area assets over the same period, up from €211 billion a year earlier. The Eurosystem's reserve assets rose to €1,858.8 billion in August from €1,752.5 billion in the previous month, mainly due to a rise in the price of monetary gold.
Summary written by Upside AI from the original article. Read the source for full details.
Read the original on ecb.europa.eu ↗
Keywords
euroforeign reservesgoldcapital flows
Open a keyword to see other news on the same topic.
Related tickers and likely impact
EUR/USD
• NeutralRelevance: low
| Market | Currencies |
|---|---|
| Close on 10/19/2026 | 1.12125 |
| Change that session | -0.24% |
Impact is scored by AI from the headline and may be wrong. It is not investment advice.
Related news
- Russia's gold reserves hit 7-year low
Russia's central bank has sold gold for 10 consecutive months, pushing its reserves to 72.8 million ounces, the lowest since 2019. It sold 200,000 ounces (about 6.2 tonnes) in September alone, and since December 2025 it has sold 2 million ounces (62 tonnes), the largest run of sales since 1998 according to the IMF. Analyst Alexander Potavin of Finam says falling oil and gas revenue has pushed the government to rely more on the National Wealth Fund to cover a budget deficit projected at 7,300 billion rubles, double the original target, and gold sales may help ease a shortage of foreign currency liquidity. Meanwhile, Hong Kong imported 112.7 tonnes of Russian gold in the first seven months of the year, above the 92.1 tonnes for all of last year, with most of it shipped on to mainland China.
- Ukraine Anti - Graft Cops Raid The Central Bank ... So Where The Gold ?
Anti-corruption detectives from NABU, working with SAPO, searched the National Bank of Ukraine headquarters in Kyiv and the home of an employee, which a law enforcement source said belonged to Governor Andriy Pyshnyi. Lawmaker Yaroslav Zhelezniak linked the probe to the Karpatnaftokhim petrochemical complex and to the running of state-owned Sense Bank by outside individuals, and called on Pyshnyi to step down. Pyshnyi says the court-ordered case concerns neither central bank operations nor his duties, and that the searches found no wrongdoing by him or NBU staff. The article speculates about Ukraine's gold reserves, estimated at 27.37 tonnes and worth roughly $4.9 billion as of January, but notes that nothing reported so far ties the probe to those reserves.
- Global Central Banks Kept Buying Gold This Summer
Central banks bought a net 62 tons of gold in July and August, according to the World Gold Council, with China adding 20 tons in August for its 22nd straight month of purchases. Poland has bought aggressively this year with 98 tons in the first eight months, while Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan bought 50 and 36 tons. Russia and Jordan were net sellers in August, offloading 6 and 3 tons. Goldman Sachs expects central banks to average 50 tons of purchases monthly this year and forecasts gold reaching $4,900 per ounce, though higher rates and a stronger dollar could limit gains. Gold traded above $4,150 per ounce but is still down about 4% this year and well below its $5,600 record.
- Russia sells 6 . 2 tonnes of gold in September as bullion reserves fall to lowest level since 2019
The Bank of Russia reported selling 200,000 troy ounces (6.2 tonnes) of gold in September, cutting its sovereign holdings to 72.8 million troy ounces (2,264 tonnes), their lowest since the end of 2019. It was the tenth consecutive monthly reduction, and the country has sold about 62 tonnes since December 2025, its largest sustained drawdown since the 1998 financial crisis. The sales come as the federal budget deficit balloons, with military and security spending projected at 38% of federal spending in 2026. The value of remaining gold reserves fell to about $301.6 billion at end-September from $333.5 billion a month earlier. Russia is the world's second-largest gold producer, with annual output above 300 tonnes.
- Gold Struggles to Rally as Russia Central Bank Bullion Drops to 2019 Level
Gold in London traded around $4,130 an ounce after dipping to $4,107, still 1.3% below last Friday, while Russia's central bank is on pace for its heaviest annual gold sales since 2000, with 62 tonnes sold in 2026 so far. Russia's gold reserves have fallen to about 2,265 tonnes, back to 2019 levels. In Shanghai, the gold premium over London shrank to $3 an ounce, the lowest in a week and less than half the typical level, which signals weaker incentive for Chinese imports. Brent crude slipped below $109 a barrel for a third straight session, and France's 10-year OAT yield moved toward quarter-century highs above 5.00%.
- BoT records rise in monetary gold holdings
Related markets
Latest news
- Bank Profits Surge
The 9-month 2026 results show many banks continued to grow profits, with some posting record quarterly earnings. VPBank's pre-tax profit reached nearly VND 30,000 billion, up nearly 47%, equal to its full-year 2025 result and about 72.4% of its 2026 plan; Q3 pre-tax profit topped VND 11,000 billion. Techcombank posted VND 28,900 billion (up 23.7%), while LPBank reported VND 10,421 billion (up nearly 9%). SSI forecasts pre-tax profit of its monitored banks to rise 19.5% in 2026 before slowing to 15.4% in 2027, pressured by narrowing net interest margins and rising credit risk provisions. It also expects system-wide credit growth of 16-17% in 2027 and 17.9% for the monitored banks.
- World's Largest Gold Fund Dumps Over 10 Tonnes of Gold as Prices Slide
SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold fund, continued net selling of nearly 12 tonnes of gold in the 22/10 session, bringing total sales over 2 sessions to nearly 15 tonnes and cutting its holdings to about 1,046 tonnes. Spot gold fell more than 2.8% to around USD 4,025 per ounce at the close of 22/10, and briefly dipped below USD 4,000 per ounce in the morning session of 23/10. Tensions in the Middle East pushed crude oil prices higher, raising concerns about inflation and further Fed tightening, and gold has still not attracted sustained safe-haven demand even as US Treasury yields fell. US September CPI rose 0.6% month on month and 3.7% year on year, while PPI rose 1.3% and 6.3%. Markets price about an 84% chance the Fed holds rates steady at its 27-28/10 meeting and a 16% chance of a 25 basis-point increase; September PCE data due on 29/10 is the next key factor to watch.
- Gold Prices Continue to Fall
On the morning of 23/10, domestic gold prices kept falling, with SJC bar prices varying by seller and the premium over world gold widening. Công ty TNHH Vàng bạc đá quý Sài Gòn listed SJC bars at VND 139-142 million per tael (buy-sell), down VND 300,000; Phú Quý was at VND 138-141.8 million, down VND 500,000; and Mi Hồng at VND 140-141.5 million, down VND 800,000. Gold rings also fell by varying amounts, with DOJI at VND 138-142 million and Phú Quý at VND 138-141 million per tael. World gold dropped USD 129 to around USD 3,992 per ounce, equal to about VND 125.3 million per tael, leaving SJC bars about VND 16.7 million per tael above the world price. The State Bank's central rate was set at 25,627 VND/USD, down 5 dong, while Vietcombank quoted 25,660-26,040 VND/USD (buy-sell).
- Company Linked to Billionaire Pham Nhat Vuong Announces Major Good News
VEFAC (ticker VEF), a Vingroup subsidiary, posted Q3 net revenue of nearly VND 77 billion, up 67% year on year, but a gross loss of about VND 27 billion as cost of sales from its exhibition business exceeded revenue. Q3 profit rose mainly thanks to a gross gain of about VND 65 billion from transferring some schools in a project to a partner, while financial income reached over VND 388 billion, mostly from loan and investment income. For the first nine months of 2026, after-tax profit was nearly VND 865 billion, down about 94% from VND 15,418 billion in the same period of 2025, as the prior year included large gains from transferring part of the Vinhomes Global Gate project. As of 30/9/2026, total assets stood at over VND 31,905 billion, up 36% from the start of the year, while total liabilities exceeded VND 24,364 billion, with short-term customer advances rising from VND 411 billion to over VND 8,373 billion.
- Lotte and Phat Dat Officially Break Ground on VND 60,000 Billion Mega Project in Thu Thiem 'Golden Land'
A joint venture between Lotte Group (South Korea) and Phát Đạt (HoSE: PDR) officially broke ground on 23/10 on Lotte Eco Smart City Thu Thiem in the Thu Thiem New Urban Area, HCMC, with total investment of about VND 60,000 billion. The project covers nearly 7.5 ha and will combine Grade A offices, retail, services, accommodation and housing, adjoining the central plaza and central lake of Thu Thiem. Phát Đạt holds 35% of Lotte Properties HCMC, the project developer, and will develop the housing blocks along with two towers (2-1 and 2-3) with about 219,722 m2 of floor area, while Lotte handles block 2-5. Lotte Properties HCMC paid VND 17,569 billion in land-use fees on 31/7/2026, and Phát Đạt completed its VND 7,666 billion payment to take its 35% stake. MB is funding all of Phát Đạt's capital contribution, while VietinBank and BIDV also support the project.
- International Business : Global stocks nosedive as Meta dents AI optimism
Global stocks retreated as tech earnings failed to ease concerns about the AI outlook, with MSCI's All-World index set for its largest daily fall in two weeks, down 0.4 per cent. Meta beat third-quarter revenue expectations, but its plan to issue non-voting stock revived worries about its mounting capital commitments, and a New Mexico judge ordered it to pay a $25 billion penalty in a data privacy case. Brent crude rose nearly 3% to $112 a barrel, near a five-month high, after more Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia raised supply risks. Investors moved into government bonds, pushing the US 10-year yield down to 5.05%, below France's for the first time in 13 years, while French yields have climbed above 5% amid concerns over social unrest and debt. The France-Germany 10-year spread reached 177.7 basis points, its widest since 2011, while gold fell 1.8% to $4,070 an ounce.
Get the briefing on Telegram or Zalo
Join the Upside Telegram channel or Zalo group for the Vietnam stocks and gold briefing at 8:00 and 19:00 (Vietnam time) on trading days, plus a weekly wrap on Saturday morning.