(Mike Maharrey, Money Metals News Letter) Higher prices appear to have put a drag on central bank gold buying. However, the pace of expanding gold reserves remains far above the historical average.
Central banks globally added 166 tonnes of gold to their reserves in the second quarter. That was a 33 percent quarter-on-quarter decline and the lowest quarterly demand since Q2 2022.
However, gold buying was still 41 percent above the quarterly average that was typical between 2010 and 2021.
Through the first half of 2025, central banks added a net 415 tonnes of gold to their reserves.
The World Gold Council notes that while central banks tend to make reserve decisions strategically, they are not totally insensitive to prices.
“As such, gold’s rally so far this year, up 26 percent, to new record levels, has likely contributed to the slowdown in central bank buying. But that they continue to add gold in the face of a higher price underscores their continuing favorable attitudes towards gold as a strategic asset amid such uncertainty.”
The National Bank of Poland was once again the top gold buyer in Q2. It added 19 tonnes of gold to its reserves last quarter, on top of 49 tonnes in Q1. Official Polish gold holdings now total 515 tonnes, making up about 22 percent of its reserves.
The National Bank of Poland now holds more gold than the European Central Bank.
Poland was the biggest buyer in 2024 as well, adding 90 tonnes to its holdings.
Last year, National Bank of Poland Governor Adam Glapiński indicated the central bank plans to increase its gold holdings to 20 percent of its reserves.
“This makes Poland a more credible country, we have a better standing in all ratings, we are a very serious partner, and we will continue to buy gold.”
The Polish central bank has exceeded that level and continues to add to its reserves.
The Central Bank of Turkey is buying gold again. It upped its reserves by 11 tonnes in the second quarter.
Turkey was one of the biggest buyers in 2024. While the pace of buying has slowed, the Turkish government will likely continue adding gold to its holdings. Meanwhile, the Turkish people are also buying a lot of gold as they deal with significant price inflation.
The National Bank of Kazakhstan added 16 tonnes of gold to its reserves last quarter. Since the beginning of the year, Kazakh gold holdings are up by about 15 tonnes.
China reported a 6-tonne increase to its official reserves in Q2. The country has reported an increase in its official gold holdings for eight straight months.
That pushed its official gold stockpile to 2,296 tonnes, about 6.5 percent of its total reserves.
Notice the emphasis on “official.”
China is one of the central banks that likely holds significantly more gold than it publicly discloses. As Jan Nieuwenhuijs has reported, the People’s Bank of China is secretly buying large amounts of gold off the books. According to data parsed by the renowned Money Metals researcher, the Chinese central bank is currently sitting on more than 5,000 tonnes of monetary gold located in Beijing – more than TWICE what has been publicly admitted.
Several other banks reported increases in their gold reserves.
- Czech Republic – 6 tonnes
- Kyrgyz Republic – 4 tonnes
- Qatar – 2 tonnes
- Cambodia – 2 tonnes
- Ghana – 2 tonnes
- Philippines – 1 tonne
- Serbia – 1 tonne
- Jordan – 1 tonne
While not a central bank, the State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan increased its gold holdings by 16 tonnes in Q2. The fund now holds 181 tonnes of gold, accounting for about 29 percent of its portfolio.
Sellers last quarter included Singapore (5 tonnes), Uzbekistan (3 tonnes), German Bundesbank (1 tonne).
The Uzbek central bank has been the biggest seller of the year, decreasing its reserves by 27 tonnes. It is not uncommon for banks that buy from domestic production – such as Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan – to switch between buying and selling.
The World Gold Council remains bullish on central bank gold buying.
“We maintain our view that central banks will continue to add gold to their reserves. Our Central Bank Gold Reserves Survey 2025 shows that respondents overwhelmingly (95 percent) expect global central bank gold reserves to increase over the next 12 months, while 43 percent believe that their own gold reserves will also increase over the same period. Notably, none of the respondents anticipate a decline in their gold reserves.”
You can read more details about that central bank survey HERE.
On net, central banks officially increased their gold holdings by 1,044.6 tonnes in 2024. It was the 15th consecutive year of expanding gold reserves.
Last year was the third-largest expansion of central bank gold reserves on record, coming in just 6.2 tonnes lower than in 2023 and 91 tonnes lower than the all-time high set in 2022. (1,136 tonnes). 2022 was the highest level of net purchases on record, dating back to 1950, including since the suspension of dollar convertibility into gold in 1971.
Looking at the broader perspective, the central bank gold buying trend is now entering its 16th year.
World Gold Council analysts expect the trend to continue, with buying “close to the range seen over the past three years on continued elevated trade-related risks and uncertainty premia in U.S. assets.”
The WGC also noted that “diversification” with “a reduction of U.S. assets” is one of the factors driving central bank gold buying. In other words, de-dollarization.
“We don’t see an end to this narrative unless there is a material shift in geopolitical tensions. The IMF has downgraded growth prospects in the U.S. more than in other major economies, citing policy uncertainty. This suggests that other countries may have leverage in negotiations, although these typically last months and years, not weeks. Hence, we don’t expect any near-term resolutions.”
Mike Maharrey is a journalist and market analyst for Money Metals with over a decade of experience in precious metals. He holds a BS in accounting from the University of Kentucky and a BA in journalism from the University of South Florida.
