Demand for gold continues to dominate the precious metals markets. This is one of the major factors supporting prices amid rising bond yields and a stronger U.S. dollar.
According to preliminary data from the World Gold Council (WGC), there has been a stable demand for gold in the third quarter, thanks to central bank purchases by countries like Poland, India, Uzbekistan, and the Czech Republic.
Krishan Gopaul, senior market analyst at WGC, said Poland purchased approximately 18 tons of gold in August. After Singapore, which bought 73.6 tons of gold as of July 2023, Poland has become one of the largest buyers this year.
People's Bank of China also stands out as a significant gold buyer in 2023, having purchased 155 tons of gold, with August marking its tenth consecutive month of gold purchases.
Another major gold buyer in Europe is the Czech Republic, which bought around 2 tons of gold in August.
Recent data from the Central Bank of Uzbekistan shows an increase of 9 tons in its gold reserves in August. However, Uzbekistan's gold reserves have been unstable, as they made a sale of 11.2 tons in July. It's worth noting that gold-producing countries like Uzbekistan often sell part of their domestically produced gold. Nevertheless, Uzbekistan's Central Bank gold reserves have fallen to 375 tons this year, which is 21 tons less than at the end of the previous year.
In August, India purchased 2 tons of gold, bringing the Reserve Bank of India's net purchases for the year to over 12 tons, resulting in total gold reserves of just under 800 tons.
The summer has been a busy period for central banks. The spike in gold purchases in August followed a 55-ton increase in global reserves in July. While central bank demand doesn't match the record pace set in 2022, it remains stable.
WGC noted that central bank demand for gold reached a new record in the first half of 2023, as reported in their second-quarter report.