Gold Demand Slumped to Lowest Quarterly Total in Q3 2020

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The World Gold Council (WGC) published the Gold Demand Trends for Q3 2020. The quarterly gold demand slumped to its lowest quarterly total since third quarter 2009. The huge drop in demand was mainly attributed to the negative effects of the global pandemic.

The demand for gold dropped to 892.3 tonnes in Q3. This is down by 19% when compared with the previous year. The year-to-date demand, at 2,972.1 tonnes, ended 10% lower from the year-ago period. The jewellery demand totalled 333 tonnes, which was still down from Q3 2019 by almost one-third. However, this is a marked improvement from the record lows reported in Q2 this year, WGC noted.

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On the contrary, gold bar and coin demand surged higher by 49% to 22.1 tonnes. The safe-haven demand for coins continued unabated in Western markets and Turkey. The quarter witnessed continued inflows into gold-backed ETFs. The global ETF holdings saw addition of 272.5 tonnes. The year-to-date flows in 2020 amounted to 1,003.3 tonnes.

Central banks reported net sales of gold in Q3, for the first time since Q4 2010. The demand for gold used in technology dropped by 6% to 76.7 tonnes. The total supply of gold registered a decline by 3%, despite growth in recycled gold supply. The gold mine production continued to remain impacted on account of Covid-19 restrictions.