Reserve Assets
Reserve Assets are external assets that are readily available to and controlled by monetary authorities for meeting balance of payments financing needs, intervening in exchange markets, or maintaining confidence in the currency and the economy. They usually include foreign exchange reserves, monetary gold, Special Drawing Rights (SDRs), and reserve positions in the International Monetary Fund, and are recorded in the financial account of the balance of payments; the precise definition and coverage may vary across countries. Published in the Latin Macro Watch of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), this indicator supports comparable analysis of external buffers across Latin America and the Caribbean. Series are reported across government levels (central government, general government, and the non-financial public sector, where available).
Coverage
The series spans 21 countries at annual, monthly, and quarterly frequency, covering 1990 to 2026. Values are available in millions of USD and as percent of GDP, each with average-of-period and end-of-period variants, plus year-to-date (YTD). Transformations include 3-, 6-, and 12-month moving averages (MA3, MA6, MA12) and month-over-month, quarter-over-quarter, and year-over-year percentage changes (MoM %, QoQ %, YoY %).
Sources
The data are drawn from national authorities including Banco Central do Brasil, Banco de Mexico (Banxico), Bank of Jamaica, and INDEC - Argentina, ensuring regionally comparable measures of reserve assets.
Metadata & use
| Format | CSV |
|---|---|
| Language | en |
| Country |
Argentina
Bahamas
Trinidad & Tobago
Belize
Costa Rica
Dominican Republic
Ecuador
Bolivia
Brazil
Chile
Colombia
El Salvador
Jamaica
Mexico
Nicaragua
Guatemala
Guyana
Haiti
Honduras
Panama
Uruguay
Venezuela
Barbados
Paraguay
Peru
Suriname
|
| Data notes |
What are Reserve Assets?Reserve Assets are external assets readily available to and controlled by monetary authorities for balance of payments needs, exchange-market intervention, or maintaining confidence in the currency. They usually include foreign exchange reserves, monetary gold, SDRs, and reserve positions in the IMF. How many countries and which frequencies and period are covered?The indicator covers 21 countries across Latin America and the Caribbean, available at annual, monthly, and quarterly frequency, over the period 1990 to 2026. What units and transformations are available?Values are available in millions of USD and as percent of GDP, each with average-of-period and end-of-period variants, plus YTD. Transformations include MA3, MA6, MA12 moving averages and MoM %, QoQ %, and YoY % changes. How do Reserve Assets differ from the stock of international reserves?This series captures reserve-asset transactions in the financial account on a BPM6 basis as a period flow, not the reserves stock (see Gross International Reserves), and excludes valuation and exchange-rate changes. Where do the data come from?The data are drawn from national authorities such as Banco Central do Brasil, Banco de Mexico (Banxico), Bank of Jamaica, and INDEC - Argentina. How do I cite this indicator?Cite it as: Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Latin Macro Watch — "Reserve Assets." data.iadb.org/dataset/latin-macro-watch-dataset. |