LONDON: Central bank gold buying reached 289 tonnes in Q2 2026, a record for that period. Purchases rose 62% year over year.
The World Gold Council released the figures on July 30. It said Q2 buying exceeded five times the revised first-quarter total of 57 tonnes.
Poland led reported purchases with 51 tonnes. This took the country’s reserves to 632 tonnes by June 30. The People’s Bank of China added 33 tonnes. It’s reported that gold holdings reached 2,346 tonnes.
Uzbekistan bought 16 tonnes, while Kazakhstan purchased 15 tonnes. Jordan and the Czech Republic each added six tonnes.
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Russia sold 22 tonnes, making it the quarter’s largest seller. Turkey sold four tonnes after leading first-quarter sales. Despite the rebound, first-half purchases totalled 345 tonnes. That marked the weakest first half since 2022.
The council said geopolitical uncertainty, lower prices and reserve diversification likely supported demand. It did not identify inflation or de-dollarisation as the sole cause.
Read: Gold Hits Record Above $5,000 Amid Global Geopolitical Uncertainty
Total gold demand, including private transactions, remained unchanged at 1,269 tonnes. The average London gold price reached $4,506.29 per ounce. That was 37% above the second-quarter 2025 average.
The International Monetary Fund said the dollar’s foreign-reserve share rose to 57.13% in Q1. The IMF said gold overtook US Treasuries within official reserves during 2025. However, rising gold prices accounted for almost all of that change.
