The World Gold Council (WGC) has published its new data on gold market, registering a rebound in gold buying by central banks in April and an end to a 12-month outflow streak from ETFs in May.
Even though the revised figure of net gold purchases by central banks in March amounted to a modest 3 tons, in April it surged to 33 tons, possibly due to the fact that central banks have shaken off the rally in the gold price and continued with their strategic buying plans.
Eight central banks increased their gold reserves by a ton or more in April. The Central Bank of Turkey was the largest buyer, increasing its official reserves by 8 tons. With 11 consecutive months of buying, the bank’s year-to-date net purchases now total 38 tons and lift its total official gold holdings to 578 tons. Meanwhile, The People's Bank of China reported a significant slowdown in its gold buying. The bank reported that its gold reserves rose by just under 2 tons in April to 2,264 tons.
The newest data by WGC shows that global gold ETFs saw inflows in May, ending their twelve-month losing streak, with Europe and Asia leading global inflows while North America and other regions registered mild losses. Global gold ETF holdings rose to 3,088 tons by the month-end, but remained 8.2% below the 2023 average of 3,363 tons. By value, the monthly increase amounted to $529 million.
Trading activities across global gold markets fell in May. WGC cited cooling momentum at the Shanghai Futures Exchange and major ETF markets which contributed to the decline. Meanwhile, OTC trading volumes fell only mildly.
Theodor Lisovoy, Editor in Chief, Rough&Polished
