Gold overtakes Euro as global reserve asset, ECB

Central banks continue to accumulate gold at a record pace.

Bullion accounted for 20% of global official reserves last year, outstripping the Euro's 16% and second only to the USD at 46%, an ECB report published on Wednesday showed.

Central banks acquired more than 1,000 tonnes of gold in 2024 for the 3rd year in a row. 20% of the total global annual production and 2X the annual amount of the 2010s.

The stock of gold held by central banks worldwide is approaching the historic highs of the postwar Bretton Woods era.

ECB noted that "Gold demand for monetary reserves surged sharply in the wake of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and has remained high," as gold purchases by "countries that are geopolitically close to China and Russia" appeared to be seen as a hedge against sanction, such as the freezing of financial assets.

Expected changes in the global monetary system and the desire to become less dependent on the US dollar, were also key drivers in Gold demand.

Read the whole article on the FT here:

https://www.ft.com/content/0d175cad-db7c-4dc2-83a8-90736f96f198

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