395 tonnes of gold have been sold since 1997: 75 tonnes in 1999; 150 tonnes in 2000; 130 tonnes in 2001; and 40 tonnes in 2002. The date of, the amount of gold sold and the allotment price at each of the 17 gold auctions is set out in the following table.
The total proceeds from the sales were around US$3.5 billion. At the morning fix on 15 December 2008 the total value of this gold was US$10.5 billion. The gold sales between July 1999 and March 2002 reflected a prudent decision to reduce over-exposure to a single asset in the net reserves portfolio.
Date Amount sold (ounces) Allotment price ($/ounce) 6 July 1999 804,000 261.20 21 September 1999 804,000 255.75 29 November 1999 804,000 293.50 25 January 2000 804,400 289.50 21 March 2000 804,400 285.25 23 May 2000 803,600 275.25 12 July 2000 804,000 279.75 19 September 2000 803,600 270.60 7 November 2000 803,600 264.30 23 January 2001 803,600 268.00 14 March 2001 803,600 266.00 15 May 2001 644,400 268.00 11 July 2001 643,600 267.25 12 September 2001 644,400 280.00 27 November 2001 644,400 273.50 16 January 2002 643,600 283.50 5 March 2002 644,400 296.50 Total sold/average price 12,707,600 274.95