2024-07-30 15:30:00
Global demand for gold weakened in the second quarter, suffering from record prices which significantly hurt private jewelry purchases.
From April to June, demand for the precious metal fell 6% year-on-year to 929 tons, according to the quarterly report of the World Gold Council (WGC) published on Tuesday.
Despite strong purchases by central banks, “in the jewelry industry, we see a reduction”, “due to the record gold prices” in recent months, sums up for AFP Krishan Gopaul, an analyst in the organization the.
Demand for jewelry in the second quarter, the largest part of gold demand, fell 19% year-on-year, to 390.6 tons.
In mid-June, the price of the yellow metal reached a historic record at more than $2,450 per ounce, a peak that has since been broken, with gold ending in mid-July at $2,483.73 per ounce. .
Not only have the prices discouraged potential buyers, but they have also “encouraged some retail investors to take profits” to take advantage of the high prices, said Louise Street, an analyst at the organization.
Lower sales of ETFs – listed securities backed by physical gold assets – than last year caused total financial investment in gold to stand still in the second quarter of the year at 253.9 tons, which reduced the large decrease in physical investment in coins and bars.
Purchases of coins and ingots actually fell to 261 tons, mainly from Western markets that chose to receive profits, despite a jump in demand from China and India, indicated the CMO in its report.
Gold purchases by central banks increased by 6% to 183.4 tonnes from April to June.
Finally, the demand for precious metal in the technology sector – it is part of the components of many electronic devices, especially used in the development of artificial intelligence – increased by 11% in the second quarter compared to the same period of the year , reaching 81.1 tons.
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