Central banks added 39 tonnes (t) to global gold reserves in January
Turkey and China again led the charge among buyers, while significant sales were virtually non-existent
The themes underpinning central bank demand remain in play and have in some cases intensified, likely keeping central bank demand well supported in 2024.
Our Full Year 2023 Gold Demand Trends report – published in January – confirmed another stellar year for central bank gold demand. While it fell slightly short of the annual record set in 2022, it was close. This generated even more attention as central bank gold demand has become a key support for gold.
Naturally, the focus has been not only on what has happened but also on what is to come. Will central banks continue to buy gold, and if so why and how much?
On the first and last of these questions, we have the beginnings of an answer. In January, central banks reported that they increased global official gold reserves by 39t. This was more than double the (revised) December net purchases of 17t, and the eighth consecutive month of net purchases.