Gold demand rallied in the closing months of 2017, gaining 6% year-on-year (y-o-y) to 1,095.8 tonnes (t) in Q4. But it was too little, too late: full year demand fell by 7% to 4,071.7t. ETF inflows, although positive, lagged behind 2016’s stellar growth. Central banks added 371.4t to global official gold reserves, 5% down on 2016’s net purchases. Bar and coin demand fell 2% on a sharp drop in US retail investment. India and China led a 4% recovery in jewellery, although demand remains below historical averages. Increased use of gold in smartphones and vehicles sparked the first year of growth in technology demand since 2010.

Q2 gold demand of 953.4t was 10% lower than 2016, while H1 demand slowed 14% to 2,003.8t.  Year-on-year comparisons suffer due to the record ETF inflows in 2016: demand from this sector slowed dramatically after last year’s H1 surge. Net central bank purchases of 176.7t were also slightly lower in the first half (-3%). Bar and coin investment was contrastingly positive, as was jewellery demand, although the latter remains weak in a long-term context. Technology demand also made modest gains.

2016 full-year gold demand gained 2% to reach a 3-year high of 4,308.7t. Annual inflows into ETFs reached 531.9t, the second highest on record. Declines in jewellery and central bank purchases offset this growth. Annual bar and coin demand was broadly stable at 1,029.2t, helped by a Q4 surge.