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De-dollarization and Resource Dominance: How China Is Transforming Its Sovereign Reserves
24.02.2026
In 2025–2026, China’s economic strategy demonstrates a clear course toward reducing external dependencies. Against the backdrop of a record merchandise trade surplus of nearly $1.2 trillion, Beijing has been actively increasing its gold reserves and leveraging its monopoly over strategic raw materials as a powerful geopolitical instrument.
Analysts presented a detailed report on the structure of the People’s Republic of China’s state reserves and foreign trade balance as of January 2026. The data point to a large-scale transformation in the country’s financial and commodity risk management system. Key findings from the report include:
Financial Reserves and De-Dollarization:
China’s foreign exchange reserves remain the largest in the world, reaching $3.399 trillion by January 2026. However, their composition is undergoing significant changes: investments in U.S. Treasuries have fallen to their lowest level since 2008. At the same time, the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) has been purchasing gold for 15 consecutive months, bringing holdings to a 10-year high of 74.19 million troy ounces. This policy is directly aimed at diversifying reserves and reducing dependence on the U.S. dollar.
Control Over Critical Raw Materials and Food Supplies:
China has built an unprecedented commodity stockpiling system. In the agricultural sector, the country holds more than half of global reserves: 51% of the world’s wheat reserves and 69% of corn reserves. Even more striking is China’s dominance in key metal supply chains: Beijing controls 80% of global gallium production, 82% of tungsten production, and 60% of rare earth metals. Export restrictions imposed in 2023–2024 on these resources — including graphite and germanium — have become a tool of asymmetric pressure in the technological rivalry with the United States.
Trade Records and Structural Imbalances:
China’s foreign trade reflects the transitional nature of its economy. In 2025, the country recorded a historic high merchandise trade surplus of $1,197.1 billion. However, the services sector continues to post a persistent deficit, amounting to approximately $165 billion in 2024. The main drivers of this gap were spending by Chinese citizens on outbound tourism ($251 billion) and imports of foreign technologies.
