How Emerging Economies Are Surprising the West

Source: Welingelichte Kringen | Original Published At: 2026-02-01 06:13:00 UTC

Key Points

• BRICS countries (China, India, Brazil) sold $28.8 billion in US Treasury bonds in October 2025, continuing a multi-year trend
• Combined BRICS gold reserves exceed 6,000 tons, with Russia (2,336 tons), China (2,298 tons), and India (880 tons) leading holdings
• Motivations include geopolitical risk mitigation (post-Ukraine sanctions) and economic concerns over US debt sustainability ($38 trillion national debt)
• Dollar's share in global reserves fell to 56.92% in Q3 2025 – lowest in 30 years – while BRICS expansion (Iran, Egypt, UAE) accelerates de-dollarization