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Gold purchases from central banks have been a key driver in bullion’s record-smashing rally this year. But officials rarely signal ahead of time when buying is top of mind.
In a break to that form, reserve managers from the central banks of Mexico, Mongolia and Czech Republic on Monday sang the praises of bigger holdings. The comments provided unique insight into how they are viewing bullion, with the officials saying that gold as a percentage of their country’s reserves is more likely to increase in the years ahead amid a confluence of growing geopolitical tensions and lower interest rates.
“Given the context that we are facing right now — lower rates, your political tension, US election, a lot of uncertainty — maybe the share of gold in our portfolios could be increasing as well,” said Joaquín Tapia, director of international reserves at Banco de México.
Enkhjin Atarbaatar of Mongolia and Marek Sestak of Czech Republic echoed Tapia’s remarks. The three officials spoke together on a panel in Miami at an annual industry conference held by the London Bullion Market Association.
“In Mongolia’s case, I expect that the reserves will continue to grow, and I also expect that the share of gold in our reserves will likely increase in the future,” said Atarbaatar, director general of the financial markets department at the Centrl Bank of Mongolia.
Sestak, deputy executive director of the risk-management department at the Czech National Bank, responded: “I completely agree as well.”
Gold has surged more than 25% so far in 2024, outperforming US equities and bonds as it keeps climbing to fresh all-time highs. The rally was partly helped by unprecedented levels of bullion purchases by central banks as reserve managers seek safety in the precious metal to safeguard their nation’s wealth against geopolitical and economic uncertainty.
The average central bank has 15% of their foreign exchange reserves in precious metals at market valuations, according to Terrence Keeley, chief executive at Impact Evaluation Lab. Keeley is a former senior BlackRock executive, responsible for overseeing the relationships and services that the firm provided to central banks and sovereign wealth funds.
(By Yvonne Yue Li)
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