Global central banks resumed net gold purchases in April, with the People's Bank of China increasing its holdings for 18 consecutive months

BlockBeats News, June 4 — The latest report from the World Gold Council shows that, after a significant net sale of gold in March, global central banks returned to net purchases in April, increasing their holdings by a total of 17 tonnes of gold that month. However, the overall gold buying scale remains lower than the same period last year.

Among them, Poland ranked first globally with a gold purchase of 14 tonnes, bringing its cumulative increase this year to 45 tonnes and total gold reserves to 595 tonnes. In April, the People's Bank of China added 8 tonnes of gold, marking the largest monthly increase since December 2023, raising its gold reserves to 2,322 tonnes and achieving an increase for 18 consecutive months. The Czech National Bank increased its gold holdings for the 38th consecutive month, with an addition of 2 tonnes in April.

Meanwhile, the Central Bank of Russia continued its trend of reducing gold holdings, with a net sale of 6 tonnes in April. The total scale of gold sold this year has reached 22 tonnes, marking the fourth consecutive month of net sales. Uzbekistan slightly reduced its holdings by 1 tonne in April, but its cumulative increase this year remains at 24 tonnes, with gold making up as much as 88% of its foreign exchange reserves.

The World Gold Council noted that central banks in Eastern Europe and Asia remain the main players in official global gold purchases. Over the past 36 months, these two regions averaged monthly gold purchases of 12 tonnes and 11 tonnes respectively, continuously supporting global gold demand. A 2025 survey shows that 95% of responding central banks expect global official gold reserves to continue growing over the next year, with 43% planning to further increase their gold holdings, up from 29% last year.