FX.co ★ South Africa Forex Reserves Fall in May

South Africa’s gross foreign exchange reserves declined to $76.58 billion in May 2026 from $77.09 billion in April, remaining at their lowest level since December 2025. The decrease in gross reserves and international liquidity was primarily driven by a lower US dollar valuation of gold holdings and government-related foreign exchange outflows. Gold reserves fell to $18.274 billion from $18.700 billion, while foreign currency reserves slipped to $51.661 billion from $51.725 billion. In addition, the forward position — reflecting the central bank’s unsettled forward or swap transactions — inched down to $0.584 billion from $0.586 billion, and SDR holdings declined by $0.016 billion to $6.648 billion from $6.664 billion.