The amount, which would equal almost 9 tons, was reflected by a drop in the bank’s total reserves, which fell to $8.6 billion on April 12, according to data provided by the central bank. About $5.1 billion of that is gold.
A central bank press official didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment on the sale Monday.
The sale could mean President Nicolas Maduro
Venezuela's attempt at producing a Muammar Qadaffy...has found a way to skirt the economic blockade. Maduro has blown through reserves, selling gold to firms in the United Arab Emirates and
...the most dubious NATO
...the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Originally it was a mutual defense pact directed against an expansionist Soviet Union. In later years it evolved into a mechanism for picking the American pocket while criticizing the cut of the American pants...
ally....
, as sanctions increasingly cut off his authoritarian regime from the global financial system. While he maintains a stranglehold on power on the ground -- including the military and government bureaucracy -- opposition leader Juan Guaido is using support from dozens of countries to slowly seize Venezuela’s financial assets abroad.
The U.S., which recognizes Guaido as the nation’s rightful leader, sanctioned state gold producer Minerven last month. It said lucrative trading in the precious metal keeps the military loyal to Maduro.