Swiss exports of gold to China were at four-year highs in 2022, with China importing 524 tonnes of gold worth around $33 bn as against imports of 354 tons in 2021, according to Swiss customs data.
According to data published by Russia’s customs agency recently, China also increased its purchases of Russian gold, importing 6.6 tons of gold from Russia in 2022, which is an increase of 67% from 2021.
China’s Central bank also stepped-up gold purchases at the end of last year, buying 30 tons of gold in December, which followed its November purchase of 32 tons of gold. China's gold reserves now total 2,010 tons.
Lower gold prices in 2022, economic uncertainty, and inflation worries spurred additional buying from other countries as well. While Switzerland exported 188 tons to Turkey, Singapore imported 69 tons of gold from Switzerland, and Thailand purchased 92 tonnes.
However, Swiss exports to India slowed to 224 tonnes in 2022 from 507 tonnes in 2021.
Aruna Gaitonde, Editor in Chief of the Asian Bureau, Rough&Polished