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Demand and supply statistics

Gold Demand and Supply – Fourth quarter and full year 2011

Global fourth quarter gold demand of 1,017.0 tonnes resulted in full-year gold demand of 4,067.1 tonnes for 2011. Although close to record levels, annual gold demand was only marginally ahead of 2010 as burgeoning investment demand was counterbalanced by declines in the jewellery and technology sectors. In value terms, fourth quarter demand increased by 21% year-on-year to US$55.2 billion. This generated a record annual value for gold demand of US$205.5 billion – a hefty 29% above the 2010 value.

  • Global jewellery demand, although below year-earlier levels, was staunch in the face of gold prices rising to record highs and difficult economic conditions in a number of markets. Fourth quarter demand amounted to 476.5 tonnes, 15% weaker year-on-year. The full-year picture was comparatively robust; demand of 1,962.9 tonnes was 3% below 2010’s annual total. The value measure of jewellery demand posted new records for both the quarter and the full year, at US$25.9 billion and US$99.2 billion respectively.
  • 2011 was a year of two halves for jewellery. The first half compared positively with H1 2010, reflecting a period of relatively steadily rising prices which allowed consumers to gradually acclimatise to higher prices, before heightened volatility in the second half put the brakes on demand.
  • A 19% year-on-year increase in fourth quarter investment demand translated to a 5% annual growth rate. Demand of 428.2 tonnes in Q4 pushed full-year demand to a record 1,640.7 tonnes, worth US$82.9 billion.
  • An almost fourfold year-on-year increase in ETF demand was largely responsible for the rise in fourth quarter investment. Inflows into gold ETFs reached 86.8 tonnes in Q4, compared with just 22.3 tonnes in Q4 2010. The annual comparison of ETF demand was considerably weaker; inflows of 154 tonnes in 2011 were less than half the 367.7 tonnes recorded in 2010. However, the second quarter of 2010 was exceptional – the second highest quarter on record at 291.6 tonnes.
  • Demand for gold bars and coins remains healthy and growth in gold coins in particular was responsible for much of the year-on-year increase in Q4 investment. On an annual basis, 2011 bar and coin demand surged 24% to 1,486.7 tonnes, largely due to growth in demand for gold bars. Growth in bar and coin demand was geographically widespread, with healthy gains noted in countries from all regions.
  • Demand for gold used in technology declined modestly in the fourth quarter, 3% lower at 112.3 tonnes. Demand from the electronics segment was broadly steady, while gold in the dentistry and other industrial sectors declined. The pattern was similar for annual demand, which declined by a marginal 0.6% to 463.5 tonnes. The value of annual demand increased 28% to a record US$23.4 billion.
  • Total supply of gold in the fourth quarter was 8% below year-earlier levels at 1,033.3 tonnes. The decline was primarily due to a decreased contribution from the Official Sector, which was a net purchaser of 92.7 tonnes in Q4 compared with sales of 17.6 tonnes in the fourth quarter of 2010. Lower levels of recycling also contributed to the slowdown in supply. On the other hand, mine production and producer hedging generated a combined 60.3 tonnes of additional supply compared with Q4 2010. The annual story was much the same, with increased supply from mine production and producer hedging being outweighed by the combination of increased official sector purchases and lower levels of recycling.
     

Read more about Gold Demand Trends in our detailed report, which also includes commentary on supply.

Press release: Record investment demand boosts global gold demand to an all time high in 2011

Data on the supply and demand for gold are compiled by Thomson Reuters GFMS. The company provides a number of tables exclusively for the World Gold Council. The following table shows a summary of gold demand. Links to more detailed tables, and to notes and copyright information, are given below. Please note the restrictions on disseminating these data.

Demand and supply statistics files

End-use demand (tonnes) This provides details of jewellery consumption, industrial and dental fabrication, and all categories of investment which are statistically identifiable.
End-use demand ($m) Similar information in US dollars.
Supply and demand (tonnes) In addition to a summary of demand information this also shows the categories of supply: mine output, net hedging or de-hedging by mining companies, recycled gold and net central bank sales.

Gold Demand 1

Demand table

Demand table - click to enlarge

1 Gold demand excluding central banks.
2 Provisional.
3 Percentage change, 12 months ended June 2011 vs 12 months ended June 2010.
4 Exchange Traded Funds and similar products including: Gold Bullion Securities (London), Gold Bullion Securities (Australia), SPDR® Gold Shares (formerly streetTRACKS Gold Shares), NewGold Gold Debentures, iShares Comex Gold Trust, ZKB Gold ETF, GOLDIST, ETF Securities Physical Gold, ETF Securities (Tokyo), ETF Securities (NYSE), XETRA-GOLD, Julius Baer Physical Gold, Central Fund of Canada and Central Gold Trust, Swiss Gold, Claymore Gold Bullion ETF, Sprott Physical Gold Trust, ETF Securities Glitter, Mitsubishi Physical Gold ETF, Credit Suisse Xmtch, Dubai Gold Securities, ETF Securities Physical Asian Gold Shares, Claymore Gold Bullion ETF (Non-hedged), DB Physical Gold and iShares Physical Gold.

Source: Thomson Reuters GFMS , LBMA, WGC

© Copyright 2012 World Gold Council and Thomson Reuters GFMS. All rights reserved.

Data on the supply and demand for gold is compiled by Thomson Reuters GFMS. The company provides a number of tables exclusively for the World Gold Council. Please refer to the notes and copyright information for details regarding the restrictions on disseminating these data. Thomson Reuters GFMS should be contacted for further information or for historical data. In addition, certain data is available on Bloomberg

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