New book ‘102 Things to Do with a Hole in the Ground‘ spotlights global reclamation projects
Stories of reinvented coal mining regions, regenerated communities and rebuilt ecosystems are told in a new book published this month.
Central banks bought close to 535 tonnes of gold in 2012, the most since 1964.
Amid a 28% fall in the gold price last year, gold purchases by central banks slowed to 409 tonnes, but may top 500 tonnes again this year.
The world’s central banks changed from being net sellers of the metal in 2009 after two decades of decreasing holdings.
Gold movements in the official sector are closely watched by the market.
None more so than the People’s Bank of China.
China’s gold reserves are officially put at 1,054 tonnes – a number officials haven’t updated since April 2009.
Rumours about massive purchases – up to 6,000 tonnes according to some estimates or a more modest 300 tonnes over the first six months of 2013 – continue to circulate as the country seeks to diversify its massive foreign exchange reserves which are mostly held in US dollars.
Gold makes up little more than 1% of the country’s $4 trillion in forex reserves.
That compares to more than 70% for the United States which holds 8,166 tonnes of gold in vaults.
Germany keeps 3,384 tonnes and Italy has 2,452 tonnes, while Russia, which recently overtook the official Chinese hoard, keeps 1,105 tonnes, or 9.8% of its total holdings in gold, according to data from the World Gold Council.
Bloomberg quotes David Marsh, managing director at the Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum, a research company, as saying “over the past six or seven years the Chinese authorities probably have been adding to their holdings in different ways”:
“It is clear that western central banks over time will be reducing their reserves and China and other Asian countries will be increasing.
“Gold will become more traded amongst central banks in the next 30 years because there are colossal imbalances in world gold holdings as a percentage of overall asset reserves.”
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange in after-hours trade on Tuesday gold for December delivery enjoyed another day of gains, albeit tiny, trading at $1,235 an ounce.
After a dismal 2013, gold attempted a comeback this year hitting a high of $1,380 in March, but gold’s retreat since then only accelerated during the third quarter with a loss of 4.5% so far in September alone. Gains since the start of the year are now just 2.5%.
2 Comments
Scott Gallup
While Obama was playing golf this summer, President Xi Jingping and President Putin were preparing everyone in their region for dedollarization. http://www.knowmadicnews.com/2014/09/12/21st-century-silk-road/
The US is seen as a bully and an untrustworthy ally. Even Israel has issue with the US now. The US needs to stop acting like the tough guy in neighborhood, and start acting like the intelligent big brother. Military power is not the path towards a stable global community in the 21st century. China and Russia realize this and are using it to their advantage. China went from the “aggressor” to the cordial regional leader in a matter of a couple months in the South China Sea. This was not by chance.
The future is a global platform: One planet, one people, one platform. The most intelligent and altruistic group will win. It has been this way since we climbed out of trees. Instead fighting to keep the Fed’s fiat money game in place, US leaders should embrace it and outwit the rivals.
How? By admitting the dollar is flawed, and embracing a new method of payments. Whether that means going back on a gold standard or embracing something like Bitcoin, either would allow the US to stay ahead in the global new world order.
James Bond
Germany only has as much gold as it has in Germany. The gold in the New York Fed has been sold or rented or misplaced long ago. Surely it cant take 7 years to move a 700 tons of metal, that is if you have it in the first place.