Consider the following statements: 1) Statement-I: Switzerland in one of the leading exporters of gold in terms of value. 2) Statement-II: Switzerland has the second largest gold reserves in the world. [2023]

Consider the following statements:

Statement-I: Switzerland in one of the leading exporters of gold in terms of value.
Statement-II: Switzerland has the second largest gold reserves in the world.

Which one of the following is correct in respect of the above statements?

Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II is the correct explanation for Statement-I
Both Statement-I and Statement-II are correct and Statement-II is not the correct explanation for Statement-I
Statement-I is correct but Statement-II is incorrect
Statement-I is incorrect but Statement-II is correct

Explanation

Statement-I is correct, but Statement-II is incorrect

Switzerland is one of the leading exporters of gold in terms of value. It is the world’s largest gold refining centre and transit hub. In addition to being the largest exporter of gold based on value, Switzerland is also consistently the largest importer of gold based on value in the world.
This can be explained by the fact that Switzerland refines some 70 percent of the world’s gold: Switzerland imports unrefined gold, and exports it in its refined form.

The top 3 countries with the most gold reserves include the United States, Germany and Italy

Bar chart showing gold reserves by country in tonnes, with United States holding the highest reserve around 8,000 tonnes. Other countries like Germany, Italy, France, and Russia have reserves ranging between approximately 1,000 to 3,000 tonnes, distinguished by different colored bars and a legend identifying each country