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LEAD: August foreign reserves fall below $1 trillion on euro declines+(Japan Economic Newswire Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) TOKYO, Sept. 5_(Kyodo) _ (EDS: ADDING INFO) Japan's foreign exchange reserves fell below the $1 trillion mark for the first time in three months at the end of August on declines in the appraisal value of the nation's euro-denominated assets, the Finance Ministry said Friday. The country's foreign reserves, the world's second-largest after China's, dropped $7.92 billion from late July to $996.74 billion, for the first slip in three months, the ministry said. A tumble in U.S. interest rates in August pushed up the value of Japan's holdings of U.S. Treasury bonds, but an appraisal loss in holdings of euro-denominated assets offset that gain, the ministry said. The euro lost ground against the dollar during the month and reduced the value of euro assets when calculated in dollar terms. According to International Monetary Fund data, China was the world's largest holder of foreign reserves as of the end of April, followed by Japan, Russia, India and Taiwan. Japan's foreign exchange reserves consist mainly of securities and deposits denominated in foreign currencies, IMF reserve positions and special drawing rights, and gold. Ministry data show that Japan had $862.29 billion in foreign securities as of Aug. 31, down from $865.27 billion a month earlier. Foreign currency deposits came to $108.97 billion, down from $111.68 billion in July. Of the deposits, $5.97 billion were held in foreign central banks and the Basel-based Bank for International Settlements, $21.59 billion in Japanese banks and $81.40 billion in foreign financial institutions. Japan had $20.49 billion in gold as of Aug. 31, down from $22.59 a month before. The appraisal value of the nation's gold holdings dipped as gold prices sank to $833.00 per troy ounce at the end of August from $918.00 in late July. The country had $1.55 billion in IMF reserve positions, down from $1.61 billion in July, and $3.07 billion in IMF special drawing rights compared with $3.15 billion a month earlier. Other reserve assets came to $368 million in August, down from $370 million in July. Copyright ? 2008 Kyodo News International, Inc. |