Taipei - According to the Central Bank, Taiwan's foreign exchange reserves increased to a record high of 291.71 billion US dollars in December, a figure which was reached on interest and other gains.

   "Our foreign exchange reserves stood at 291.707 billion US dollars as of end of December, up 11.022 billion dollars from the end of November," the bank said in a press statement.

   It said the increase - the biggest in history - was mainly due to interest rate gains and a valuation increase of the euro, the Japanese yen and Swiss franc against the dollar.

   "Between end-November and end-December, the euro had risen 9.36 per cent against the US dollar, while the Japanese yen had risen 5.6 per cent and the Swiss franc had increased 13.6 per cent against the greenback," the bank said.

   The increase allowed Taiwan to remain the fourth largest foreign exchange reserve holder in the world - after China, Japan and Russia - as of end of December, the bank said.

   Taiwan's foreign exchange reserves are deposited as US dollars, euro, Japanese yen, Swiss franc and some other major currencies in major banks in the world.