Central banks bought 28.4 t of gold in August, which was a 9% decline month-on-month, the World Gold Council (WGC) reports.
Not including January's 11.2 t of net sales, this is the lowest level of monthly central bank net purchases so far.
The council attributes the slower pace of buying over the summer period in the northern hemisphere to the absence of sizeable purchases, while central bank demand from March to June had been marked by several large-scale purchases in Thailand, Hungary and Brazil, boosting global net purchases in the first half of the year to 333 t – 39% above the five-year first-half average.
WGC market intelligence manager Krishan Gopaul says that, at the gross level, central banks bought 30 t of gold in August.
Interest was limited to a small group of familiar faces, with recent buyers India (12.9 t), Uzbekistan (8.7 t), Kazakhstan (5.3 t) and Turkey (2.8 t) all adding to their gold reserves once again.
On the other hand, gross sales were insignificant. They totalled less than 2 t, with Qatar registering the largest drop in gold reserves of 0.9 t.
“It is probably too early to suggest the recent trend of buying is running out of steam. Central banks have stated their positive sentiment towards gold and it is unlikely that this will change imminently.
“But without larger purchases like we saw between March and June, we anticipate a more modest level of buying going forward,” Gopaul notes.