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Record central bank buying lifts global gold demand, WGC says

Central banks bought a record 399 tonnes of gold worth around $20 billion in the third quarter of 2022, helping to lift global demand for the metal, the World Gold Council (WGC) said on Tuesday.

Demand for gold was also strong from jewellers and buyers of gold bars and coins, the WGC said in its latest quarterly report, but exchange traded funds (ETFs) storing bullion for investors shrank.

Gold is typically seen as a safe asset for times of uncertainty or turmoil, but many financial investors sold shares in gold-backed ETFs as interest rates rose and pushed up returns on other assets.

Offloading of bullion by ETFs helped push gold prices down 8% in the third quarter, but this price fall helped stimulate demand for jewellery, the WGC said.

In total, the world’s gold demand amounted to 1,181 tonnes in July-September, up 28% from 922 in the same period in 2021, the WGC said.

Demand in the year to September had recovered to…

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