The World Gold Council said today, Wednesday, that central banks sold more gold last August than they bought, ending a year and a half of the monthly increase in gold purchases, which contributed to stopping the rapid rise in the price of the yellow metal.
Gold rose from just above $ 1,500 at the start of 2019 to a record high of $ 2,072.5 in early August, then fell to around $ 1,900.
Investors in Europe and North America pushed prices up and raised gold, hoping that it would retain its value during the Corona crisis.
But demand from major consumers such as jewelery buyers and central banks has been weak, raising concerns about the precious metal's continued rise.
The Gold Council said that central banks sold 12.3 tons more than they bought last August.
The report showed that the purchases were concentrated among regular buyers such as the Kyrgyz Republic and India by about 5 and 4 tons, respectively, while Turkey added about 3.9 tons to its reserves.
The Turkish Central Bank ranked 12th in the world with the most gold possession by 606.6 tons, representing 48.6% of the country's total foreign reserves.
The report indicated that sales outperformed purchases in August, due to the record-breaking sale to Uzbekistan, which sold around 32 tons.
Uzbekistan's gold reserves decreased to 298.9 tons, representing 54.3%.
Central banks bought 656 tons of gold in 2018, the highest number in half a century, while last year purchases amounted to 650 tons.
Central banks currently hold about 35.123 thousand tons of gold, worth about two trillion dollars.
Gold plays a major role in managing central bank reserves, as it possesses large quantities of the yellow metal.
The United States is the most gold-possessing country in the world, with more than 8 thousand tons (agencies)
Most in possession of gold
The United States continues to top the list of gold reserves by about 8,133.5 tons, equivalent to 79.8% of its monetary reserves.
Germany is in second place with 3362 tons, which represents 77.2% of the total reserves.
- The International Monetary Fund was ranked third among the most possessors of gold, at 2814 tons.
Fourth Italian Central Bank, by 2,451.8 tons.
France ranked fifth, with reserves of 2,436 tons.
Russia is sixth, with 2,299.3 tons.
Prices of the precious metal have increased by more than 25% since the beginning of 2020 so far, from the level of $ 1500 an ounce in January to levels around $ 1900 an ounce.
Gold has witnessed a great demand as it is a safe haven in times of crises and a store of value, amid the escalating economic repercussions associated with the outbreak of the new Corona virus.
The World Gold Council is an organization that works to develop the market for the gold industry, and aims to stimulate and sustain the demand for the yellow metal globally.