According to a World Gold Council report released on Tuesday, global gold demand in 2022 hit its highest level since 2011 on record central bank purchases that more than doubled in a year.
Gold demand for all of 2022 reached 4,740.7 tons, up 18% from 2021, thanks to strong fourth quarter results.
“The big surprise of the year was obviously the record demand from central banks, which reached the highest level in the last 55 years, purchasing more than 800 tons in the second half of the year alone,” the council said. World Gold Council (WGC) analyst Louise Street in an interview with AFP.
Over the past year, the demand for gold from these institutions has more than doubled, reaching 1,135.7 tons from 450.1 tons a year earlier.
As the WGC analyst explains, gold is highly valued by central banks, who use it “as a long-term reserve of value,” mainly because it performs well during a crisis, serving as a bulwark against inflation.
Purchases of gold bars and coins continued into 2022, continuing to attract investors in several countries, offsetting weak demand from China. In total, investments in bars and coins in 2022 amounted to 1,217.1 tons compared to 1,190.9 tons in 2021.
On the other hand, the jewelry and technology sectors registered a slight drop in demand, falling by 2% and 7% respectively last year (2,189.8 tons in the case of jewelry and 308.5 tons in the case of technology).
The slowdown in demand in the technology sector is mainly due to continued supply chain challenges following the COVID-19 pandemic, with the slowdown in global economic growth also weighing on consumer demand.
As far as gold jewelry is concerned, the Indian and Chinese markets play a central role. Traditionally, families use weddings and other celebrations to turn some of their savings into gold bars, necklaces, rings, bracelets and other items that are the perfect hideaway.
Until December, however, China maintained a very strict health policy called “covid-zero”, which included, among other things, universal screening tests, strict monitoring of movements, and mandatory restrictions and quarantines as soon as new cases were discovered. discovered. The abandonment of this policy provoked a sharp increase in cases of covid.
As a result, demand for jewelry in China fell by 15%, while investment in gold and coins fell by 24%.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
I am Michael Melvin, an experienced news writer with a passion for uncovering stories and bringing them to the public. I have been working in the news industry for over five years now, and my work has been published on multiple websites. As an author at 24 News Reporters, I cover world section of current events stories that are both informative and captivating to read.