Archived - Official International Reserves - March 3, 2023

- All 2023 Official International Reserves -

The Department of Finance Canada announced today that Canada’s official international reserves decreased by an amount equivalent to US$1,143 million during February to US$108,766 million. This was largely driven by positive reserves management funding operations (US$1,267 million)^{Footnote 1} that were more than offset by a net loss on investments (-US$2,384 million)^{Footnote 2}.

Details on the level and composition of Canada’s reserves as of February 28, 2023, as well as the major factors underlying the change in reserves, are provided below. All figures are in millions of US dollars unless otherwise noted.

Table 1
**Foreign currency reserves**
	Amount Millions of US dollars
Securities	74,830
Deposits	6,154
Total securities and deposits (liquid reserves):	80,984
Gold	0
Special drawing rights (SDRs)	23,091
Reserve position in the International Monetary Fund (IMF)	4,389
Other reserve assets^{Footnote 3}	302
Total:
February 28, 2023	108,766
January 31, 2023	109,909
Net change:	-1,143

Table 2
**Details on deposits**
	Amount Millions of US dollars
Other central banks/Bank for International Settlements	6,154
Banks headquartered in Canada	0
Of which: located abroad	0
Banks headquartered abroad	0
Of which: located in Canada	0
Total:	6,154

Table 3
**Details of net change**
	Amount Millions of US dollars
Reserves management operations^{Footnote 1}	1,267
Gains and losses on gold sales	0
Net investment gains and losses:
Return on investments^{Footnote 4}	-1,042
Foreign currency debt charges	-195
Revaluation effects^{Footnote 5}	-1,147
Net government operations^{Footnote 6}	-26
Official intervention	0
Other transactions	0
Net change:	-1,143

Table 4
**Currency composition of deposits and securities**
	Amount Millions of US dollars
US dollar	57,372
Euro	10,404
Pound sterling	6,788
Yen	6,420
Total:	80,984

Table 5
**Predetermined short-term drains on foreign currency reserves (nominal value)**
Millions of US dollars
	0 to 1 month	1 to 3 months	3 to 12 months	Total
Foreign currency securities:^{Footnote 7}
Principal	-2,390	-2,875	-5,093	-10,358
Interest	-122	-280	-1,210	-1,612
Aggregate short forward positions in foreign currencies vis-à-vis Canadian dollar	0	0	0	0
Aggregate long forward positions in foreign currencies vis-à-vis Canadian dollar	0	0	0	0
Total net drains:	-2,512	-3,155	-6,303	-11,970

Table 6
**Additional information (nominal value)**
	Amount Millions of US dollars
Undrawn, unconditional credit lines with banks headquartered outside Canada	0
Securities lent under repurchase agreements^{Footnote 8}	0
Securities held under repurchase agreements^{Footnote 9}	5,031
Financial derivatives assets (net, marked to market):
Forwards	38
Swaps	-1,915

Footnotes

Footnote 1

Net change in securities and deposits resulting from foreign currency funding activities of the government. Foreign reserves are managed under an asset-liability matching framework. Therefore, when a foreign currency liability matures, assets are used to repay the principal, leading to a decrease in reserves. In February 2023, Canada bills increased by US$664 million to a level of outstanding bills of US$2,473 million. An equivalent of US$1,024 million in cross-currency swaps was raised while US$422 million in cross-currency swaps matured during the month.

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Footnote 2

Net investment gains and losses include return on investments, foreign currency debt charges and revaluation effects.

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Footnote 3

"Other reserve assets" include the distribution of SDRs allocated to Canada by the IMF as part of the IMF Resilience and Sustainability Trust borrowing agreement.

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Footnote 4

"Return on investments" comprises US$302 million of interest earned on investments and a US$1,344 million decrease in the market value of securities. Effective April 1, 2022, the government adopted accounting standard PSAB – Section PS 3450; the interest amount reported is now calculated in accordance with this standard.

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Footnote 5

"Revaluation effects" reflect changes in the market value of reserve assets resulting from movements in exchange rates. In February 2023, the revaluation effect was mainly due to the depreciation of the Japanese yen, the euro and the pound sterling.

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Footnote 6

"Net government operations" are the net purchases of foreign currency for government foreign exchange requirements and for additions to reserves.

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Footnote 7

"Foreign currency securities" include maturities of foreign currency debt, cross-currency swap payments and an estimate of interest payments on foreign currency liabilities.

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Footnote 8

"Securities lent under repurchase agreements" are included in total reserves. Collateral provided in securities lending transactions is not included in total reserves.

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Footnote 9

Cash invested under repurchase agreements is included in total reserves. Collateral provided in securities lending transactions is not included in total reserves.

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Table 7
**Official international reserves (10-year synopsis)**
Millions of US dollars
Date	US dollars	Other currencies	Gold	SDRs	IMF position	Other Reserve Assets	Total
February 28, 2023	57,372	23,612	0	23,091	4,389	302	108,766
January 31, 2023	57,706	24,353	0	23,178	4,365	307	109,909
December 30, 2022	56,652	23,077	0	22,875	4,348	303	107,255
November 30, 2022	56,410	22,872	0	22,574	4,307	299	106,462
October 31, 2022	56,388	20,965	0	22,008	4,123	292	103,776
September 29, 2022	56,081	20,330	0	22,171	4,107	0	102,689
August 31, 2022	59,520	21,444	0	22,613	4,189	0	107,766
July 29, 2022	56,625	22,833	0	22,919	4,261	0	106,638
June 30, 2022	56,690	22,327	0	22,991	4,274	0	106,282
May 31, 2022	58,218	22,000	0	23,418	4,257	0	107,893
April 29, 2022	57,074	20,982	0	23,322	4,240	0	105,618
March 31, 2022	53,114	22,273	0	23,983	4,394	0	103,764
February 28, 2022	51,290	23,229	0	23,916	4,454	0	102,889

December 30, 2022	56,652	23,077	0	22,875	4,348	303	107,255
December 31, 2021	55,378	22,771	0	23,997	4,469	0	106,615
December 31, 2020	49,236	27,584	0	8,886	4,722	0	90,428
December 31, 2019	48,646	24,967	0	8,527	3,157	0	85,297
December 31, 2018	49,090	24,189	0	7,941	2,706	0	83,926
December 29, 2017	51,343	25,308	0	7,975	1,999	0	86,625
December 30, 2016	52,496	20,453	0	7,578	2,191	0	82,718
December 31, 2015	48,229	20,848	58	7,899	2,719	0	79,753
December 31, 2014	43,756	19,000	116	8,164	3,664	0	74,700
December 31, 2013	39,514	18,916	115	8,675	4,717	0	71,937
December 31, 2012	35,622	19,621	181	8,754	4,368	0	68,546

Future release dates

The next release is April 5, 2023 (covering the period of March 2023).

For further information on the Exchange Fund Account, please consult the Report on the Management of Canada's Official International Reserves—April 1, 2021 - March 31, 2022.

Contacts

For further information, media may contact:

Media Relations
Department of Finance Canada
mediare@fin.gc.ca
613-369-4000

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Date modified:: 2023-08-25

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Archived - Official International Reserves - March 3, 2023

Future release dates

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