Krishan Gopaul

Our central bank gold statistics were published today, and the latest IMF data makes for a very interesting read. Available data for July highlights central bank net purchases of 8.8t – the lowest level of monthly net purchases since December 2018 (-1.5t).

The gold market has continued to take steps towards greater transparency by improving the availability and accessibility of data. Today, another step forward is taken as the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA), the Bank of England, and the commercial vaults have announced they will now be publishing gold and silver holdings within the vaults in London with a one-month lag, compared to the previous three month lag.

To help people better understand how gold goes from the ground to the market, we have produced a short animation, which we have created in response to increased attention the gold supply chain has received this year.

In this Pensions Age article, Krishan Gopaul explores the question; two-thirds of pension funds are deeply concerned about the future of the global economic and financial system: How might gold help?

Central bank net purchases totalled 39.8t in May, in line with net purchases in March and April, and above the monthly average of 35t over the first four months of this year.

In April, central banks bought another 31.6t based on IMF data. While the monthly increase is not far off the 6-month average (34.7t), it is 24% lower than March and 35% lower than April 2019.

In February, central banks bought a net 36 tonnes (t) of gold, almost a third higher than January’s net purchases, but 52% lower y-o-y. This brings y-t-d net purchases to 64.5t, 44% lower than the 116.1t of net purchases over the first two months of 2019.

Wishful thinking. That’s how Angel Gurría, secretary general of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), responded to any prospect of a swift economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. But the scale of the impact on the global economy – as well as our daily lives – has been matched by the scale of the financial response.

Today we’ve published our latest central bank gold data, which now includes buying and selling activity for January 2020.

At the end of January, the new head of the European Central Bank (ECB), Christine Lagarde, announced the launch of a year-long strategic review of the bank’s monetary policy strategy. Stemming from this, there has been much discussion recently about the ECB’s existing “below but close to 2%” inflation target, and whether this needs to be made more specific, both in aim and measurement. 

In November, central banks reported adding 27.9 tonnes – on a net basis – to global official gold reserves, 43% lower than October’s increase. On a year-to-date basis, this brings cumulative net purchases to 570.2t, 11% higher the same period in 2018 (515.2t).

Our latest central bank data is now available on Goldhub and makes for interesting reading. Looking at the latest statistics on gold, monthly increases (of a tonne or greater) in gold reserves have begun to ease over the past three months. In October, reported net purchases totalled a healthy 41.8t, but this was 16% lower than September (49.6t), which itself was 16% lower than August (59t).

Yesterday, the International Monetary Fund released their updated World Economic Outlook. And, if investors were looking for any seeds of optimism, may I suggest reading The Art of Happiness by the Dalai Lama instead?

Today we have published our latest central bank data for August. As usual, I’ll be summarising the key highlights. But if you want to dig a little deeper, you can find our central bank data set here.

While the gold market is a complex place, full of interesting dynamics and uses, nothing quite gets people's attention like the gold price.