Wold Gold Council: Gold-Backed ETF Holdings Surged 15%

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The global gold-backed ETF Assets Under Management (AUM) surged higher by 15% in June, recording the largest monthly increase in seven years, said the latest statistics published by the World Gold Council (WGC).

According to WGC report, the net holdings in global gold-backed ETFs and similar products witnessed sharp surge by 127 tonnes (t) during the month to 2,548t. The shift in policy by central banks and the escalating geopolitical uncertainties resulted in increased investment in gold instruments.

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All regions across the world reported strong inflows during the month. The North American funds reported inflows of 65t.  The SPDR Gold Shares saw addition of 51t, whereas iShares Gold Trust reported addition of 12t. The holdings in European funds rose by 59t. In the UK, ETFS Physical Swiss Gold added 23t, whereas iShares Physical Gold ETC and Invesco Physical Gold recorded addition of 20t and 5.7t respectively. The funds listed in Asian region reported inflows of 2.4t. The Bosrea’s listed fund in China and Huaan Yifu witnessed strong additions during the month. Other regions saw inflows of 0.4t.

During Q2 this year, global gold-backed ETFs added 67t, significantly higher by 11% when matched with the corresponding quarter in 2018. Nearly all the inflows came from European funds, primarily from UK-based funds. The WGC had reported boosted gold demand in Q1 this year, on account of central bank purchases and ETF flows.

Also, the gold backed ETFs reported 4.3% surge during the initial six-month period of the current year.