Information notice on the gold and foreign exchange reserves of theSouth African Reserve Bank as at 31 December 2004 This notice provides details of the US dollar equivalent of the level of the Reserve Bank’s gold and foreign exchange reserves as at 31 December 2004 published today in the Bank’s Statement of Assets and Liabilities. The notice also provides details of the level of outstanding foreign loans and any foreign exchange forward position.  As at31 December 2004(‘million)As at30 November 2004(‘million) Change(‘million)Gold reserves '1$1,744$1,803-$59Foreign exchange reserves$13,154$12,622$532Gross reserves$14,898$14,425$473Foreign loans '1-$3,497-$3,500$3Other-$3-$3$0Forward position '3$28$96-$68International liquidity position    (net reserves)$11,426$11,018$408Rand/Dollar exchange rateMarket gold price '1Statutory gold price '2R5.6300$437.750R2,230.44R5.7850$452.750R2,347.98   At the end of December 2004 the official gross gold and foreign exchange reserves amounted to US$14,9 billion and net reserves to US$11,4 billion. In a month in which trading activity was lower as a result of the holiday season, the Reserve Bank made moderate purchases of foreign exchange from the market and from clients in order to continue gradually increasing its level of foreign exchange reserves. The change in the forward position relates to unsettled foreign exchange spot purchases undertaken on the last two days of the respective month-ends. _____________________________1 Gold in US dollar terms is reflected at middle market rates while, in rand terms for balance sheet reporting, the gold holdings are reflected at the statutory price. For reporting purposes all foreign currency figures have been converted to US dollar at middle market rates at month end.2 The statutory gold price is the average of the last 10 London gold price fixings less 10 per cent.3     The forward position is made up of unsettled foreign currency spot, forward and swap transactions. ​