SYDNEY, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Australia's central bank booked a net profit of A$6.9 billion ($5 billion) in the year to June as a falling local dollar boosted the value of its foreign currency reserves, allowing it to pay a sizable dividend to government coffers.
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) said it made gains of A$6.06 billion on its currency reserves and A$832 million in underlying earnings.
Some A$1.88 billion will go to the government as a dividend, A$942 million of which was paid in September with the remainder deferred to 2016/17.
About A$1.6 billion went to the RBA's general reserve fund (RBRF), which is used to offset assets at risk, taking that to A$12.7 billion.
The fund was badly depleted in 2011 and 2013 when a rising local dollar caused large book losses on its foreign currency holdings. Former Treasurer Joe Hockey granted the central bank A$8.8 billion in the 2013/14 financial year in order to help rebuild the fund.