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Bank of Zambia (BoZ) Governor, Dr. Denny Kalyalya, has disclosed that the Central Bank’s total gold holdings now stood at 3,051.3 kilogrammes, with a market value of US$396.3 million, since it began purchasing locally produced gold in December 2020.
Kalyalya said the Central Bank purchased 186.62 kilogrammes of gold during the third quarter of 2025, at a purchase value of US$21.5 million, bringing the cumulative total to 3,051.3 kilogrammes.
He made the announcement during the BoZ’s third-quarter media briefing for 2025, noting that the current price of gold was US$4,115.68 per kilogramme.
On gross international reserves, Dr. Kalyalya revealed that the country’s reserves rose to US$5.2 billion at end-September, equivalent to 5.2 months of import cover, compared to US$4.7 billion or 4.7 months at end-June.
“The build-up in reserves was mainly due to the disbursement of US$191.1 million under the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Extended Credit Facility (ECF) arrangement, project receipts, net statutory reserve deposits, Bank of Zambia purchases, and interest earnings on reserves,” he said.
Kalyalya also announced that Zambia’s exports grew by 22.1 percent to US$3.7 billion, driven by higher copper export earnings and non-traditional exports such as maize, burley tobacco, electrical cables, cement, lime, and gemstones.
At the same time, imports increased by 11.8 percent to US$3.1 billion.
“This was supported by sustained demand for intermediate and capital goods, particularly industrial boilers and equipment, electrical machinery, and motor vehicles, in part due to the appreciation of the exchange rate,” he said.
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On domestic credit, Kalyalya reported that overall credit growth rose to 17.4 percent year-on-year in September, up from 12.7 percent in June.
He said credit to the private sector expanded by 21.4 percent in September, compared to 19.8 percent in June, mainly driven by lending to the electricity, transport, agriculture, and manufacturing sectors.
“The liability management operation undertaken by government to clear fuel arrears and demand for government securities accounted for the expansion in credit,” Kalyalya said.
He added that the total outstanding government securities stood at K242 billion at end-September, with non-resident investor holdings accounting for K61 billion or 25.4 percent of the total.
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