The precise amount depends on the gold price and the dollar exchange rate at the time of the sales; if the sales option now included in the new gold agreement of the G-10 central banks were to be exercised in full, a sum of no more than several billion euro would accrue within five years given the present market situation.
By way of comparison, we might consider that the federal budget for 2004 amounts to € billion, € billion of which is financed by means of net new loans. Consequently, sound fiscal planning disregards any sizeable financing potential from the gold reserves or any significant relief for the federal budget.