World Central Bank Gold Reserves Surged in February, Says WGC

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The recent report by the World Gold Council (WGC) noted that global central bank gold reserves continued to rise for the ninth consecutive month in February this year.

According to Krishan Gopaul, Senior Analyst, EMEA, WGC, the central bank gold reserves surged higher by 19 tonnes during the month. However, the purchases registered sharp decline by 58% when compared with the purchases of 45 tonnes of gold in January 2024. The slower gross purchases coupled with higher sales volume led to slower buying during February, he said.

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Year-to-date, central banks reported addition of 64 tonnes over the period of first two months of the year. This is 43% lower, when compared with the same period in 2023, but significantly higher by four times upon comparison with 2022.

The largest buyer during the month was the People’s Bank of China, which added 12 tonnes to its gold reserves. The National Bank of Kazakhstan boosted its gold reserves by 6 tonnes in February. The official central bank gold reserves in India and Turkey increased by 6 tonnes and 4 tonnes respectively.

Meantime, the only two notable gold sellers during February 2024 were the Central Bank of Uzbekistan and the Central Bank of Jordan, which lowered its gold holding by 12 tonnes and 4 tonnes respectively.