IMF concludes 403 metric tons of gold sales

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) announced on Tuesday the conclusion of the limited sales program covering 403.3 metric tons of gold that was approved by the IMF executive board in September 2009.

"These sales are a central element of the new income model for the IMF that was endorsed by the executive board in April 2008. They will also increase the IMF's capacity to support low-income countries under a strategy endorsed by the board in July 2009," the Washington-based agency said in a statement.

The new income model was designed to provide the IMF with more diverse income sources that were better aligned with the variety of its functions.

The IMF noted that the gold sales were conducted "under modalities to safeguard against disruption of the gold market," with all gold sales at market prices, including direct sales to official holders.

Source: Xinhua