(Yicai) April 7 -- China increased its gold reserves in March for the fifth month in a row amid rising global trade tensions.

The People’s Bank of China increased its holdings of gold by 90,000 ounces to 73.7 million ounces last month, according to official data released today. By value, China’s gold reserves rose by USD21 billion to USD229.6 billion.

From November to last month, the PBOC added 900,000 ounces of gold. Its reserves had been steady for the six months prior to that.

Gold is widely regarded as a safe-haven asset, and its value has risen 15 percent so far this year due to growing global economic uncertainty, including the impact of steeper US tariffs.

The precious metal hit a record high price of USD3,167.74 per ounce on April 3, but has since retreated a little, softening to USD3,028.95 as of 8.03 p.m. Beijing time today.

The SAFE also revealed that China’s foreign exchange reserves have been rising for the last three months. At the end of March, holdings had reached USD3.24 trillion, an increase of USD13.4 billion from the end of February.

China’s forex reserves were boosted by exchange rates and asset price changes last month. The US Dollar Index, a measure of the greenback’s value relative to a basket of other currencies, and global financial asset prices generally fell during the month, while China's economy was stable, providing support for the value of its reserves, the SAFE said.

External uncertainties have increased significantly, but China has ample economic policy tools and the space to release huge domestic demand potential, said Wen Bin, chief economist at China Minsheng Bank.

China’s foreign trade structure has also been upgraded, and the attractiveness of Chinese yuan assets to foreign capital has been enhanced, suggesting that China’s balance of payments will continue to remain stable, Wen noted.

Editor: Tom Litting