A data light shortened week in the US put the spotlight on Fed Chairman Warsh’s first meeting and a perceived ‘hawkish pause’. Sentiment was however aided by signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the US and Iran.
India’s gold market cooled in May as higher duties, elevated domestic prices and seasonal softness weighed on demand. Physical buying softened across jewellery, bars and coins, while imports fell from the previous month. ETF investors booked profits after the price rally following the duty hike, resulting in record May outflows before inflows resumed in June; digital gold buying also slowed, though it remained above average.
China’s official gold holdings saw a 10t rise in May, reaching 2,332t (9% of total reserves), the largest reported increase since December 2024. Yet wholesale gold demand fell notably, dented by both seasonal weakness in the jewellery sector and cooling investment momentum – monthly gold ETF flows turned negative for the first time since last August.
In this episode of Unearthed, hosts John Reade and Joe Cavatoni are joined by Nicky Shiels, Head of Research and Metal Strategy at MKS PAMP – one of the world's leading precious metals refiners and trading houses.
Central banks resumed net gold purchases in April, having bought 17t. This was a rebound from the sizeable net sales reported in March. Poland remained be the top buyer in the month (14t), while China intensified its pace of purchases: its 8t net purchase is the highest since December 2024 and extends its current buying run to 18 consecutive months. The Czech Republic shows similar consistency in purchases, having bought 3t in April, its 38th consecutive monthly purchase. Meanwhile, Russia continues its sales streak this month (6t), with y-t-d sales of 22t.
