This country is significantly increasing its gold imports sourced from Russia.
Switzerland Imports Record Amount of Gold from Russia
According to Swissinfo, from the end of February 2022 to the end of June 2023, 75 tons of gold sourced from Russia were delivered to Switzerland’s gold refining and minting facilities.
Since 2021, a total of 110 tons of gold, valued at over $6.6 billion, have been processed through refining facilities based in Switzerland. These figures indicate that the European nation is significantly increasing its gold imports from Russia.
Before February 24, 2022, Switzerland imported an average of 20 tons of gold from Russia each year. In just the first five months of 2023, 38 tons of gold from Russia were transported to Switzerland via London.
Switzerland has imported a large amount of gold sourced from Russia. (Photo: BBC).
The Significance of Gold to the Swiss Economy
According to Reuters, Switzerland is an important hub in international gold trade, with four major gold refining plants producing two-thirds of the world’s gold.
In other words, most of the gold in the world passes through Switzerland. Swiss gold refineries process 70% of the unrefined gold mined globally each year. Four out of the nine major companies in the global gold industry conduct most of their business operations in Switzerland.
Swissinfo reports that although gold in Switzerland comes from 90 different countries, nearly half is imported from the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), or Hong Kong (China).
Switzerland also imports a significant amount of gold from countries that consider gold a key export commodity, such as Burkina Faso (where gold accounts for 72% of the country’s export value), Ghana (51%), and Mali (77%).
Swiss gold refineries process 70% of the unrefined gold mined globally each year.
The gold refining industry plays a crucial role in the Swiss economy. 24% of Switzerland’s export value and 31% of its import value are directly related to gold.
In 2017, 2,404 tons of gold were imported into Switzerland, with a total value of $80.7 billion. In the same year, Switzerland exported gold worth $77.2 billion.
In comparison, during the same period, Swiss watch manufacturers exported approximately 24 million timepieces, valued at around $23 billion, while chocolate manufacturers achieved only 128,000 tons, with a total value of $1.15 billion.
To match the achievements of the gold industry, these sectors would need to export 85 billion chocolate bars or 85 million watches.
In Switzerland, only the pharmaceutical industry holds more weight than the gold sector. In 2017, Swiss pharmaceutical companies achieved an export value of $113 billion.
The issue of gold sourcing has sparked debate in Switzerland. As mentioned earlier, nearly half of the gold imported into Switzerland comes from the UK, UAE, and Hong Kong (China), but these countries/territories are merely transit points for unrefined gold coming from elsewhere in the world.
Marc Ummel, head of development policy in the raw materials sector at Swissaid, stated: “Multinational gold refining companies in Switzerland are well aware of where their raw materials come from. They just choose not to disclose it.”
The Swiss government has also noted in a report that the origin of gold needs to be clearly traceable, but in reality, Swiss regulatory authorities only track the countries that directly export gold to them, not the actual countries of origin.
