Global central banks bolstering gold reserves

The latest data shows that globally, central banks have accelerated their appetite for gold, with the largest monthly increase in several months recorded. The new figures, which relate to February, were published earlier this week and confirm that central gold reserves have grown by net 51 tonnes (t), the single biggest growth witnessed since October 2018.

In expert commentary, Krishan Gopaul, from the World Gold Council (which provided some of the data) Market Intelligence Group said that banks appeared to be reacting to economic uncertainty and continuing geopolitical instability in choosing to boost their gold reserves. The report cites a recent piece of World Gold Council research which found that 76% of central banks considered gold to be a ‘safe haven asset’ while 59% said it was an effective means of portfolio diversification.

Diversification appears to be one of the key factors prompting in the gold reserve rush. As a result, central bank gold holdings have grown by 90t in the two months to February – almost double the 56t recorded at the same stage last year.

China and Russia were key figures in this data, with Russia increasing its holdings by over 31t and China up 10.02t according to the report.