Today's Edition
YOUSSEF AL ARABi (ABU DHABI) - The volume of gold sales in the UAE during the first nine months of 2023 reached approximately 37.8 tonnes, according to the Gold Demand Trends report issued by the World Gold Council on Tuesday.
Jewellery accounted for 78% of the total volume of gold sales in the UAE during the period from January to September of this year, with its sales volume reaching about 29.5 tonnes during the period. The share of financial instruments, bullion, and gold coins constituted 22% of the total volume of gold sales in the UAE during the first nine months of this year.
Sales of financial instruments and bullion increased by 31% during the period from January to September of this year compared to about 6.3 tonnes during the corresponding period last year. In the third quarter of the current year, the total volume of gold sales in the UAE stabilised, recording 12.5 tonnes compared to about 12.8 tonnes during the corresponding period last year.
Gold sales in the UAE during the third quarter of this year were distributed as follows: 73.6% for jewellery versus 26.4% for financial instruments, bullion, and gold coins. The volume of sales of financial instruments, bullion, and gold coins grew by 57% in the third quarter of this year, reaching 3.3 tonnes compared to about 2.1 tonnes during the corresponding period last year.
Jewellery sales in the UAE during the period from July to September amounted to about 9.2 tonnes compared to 10.7 tonnes during the corresponding period last year. The Gold Demand Trends report, for the third quarter of the year, revealed that support for these assets continues with central banks maintaining a historical pace, where quarterly demand for gold, excluding over-the-counter trading, amounted to 1,147 tonnes, 8% higher than the average demand over the past five years.
According to the World Gold Council’s data series, central banks witnessed the third strongest quarterly net purchase, reaching 337 tonnes. Although it did not break the record set in the third quarter of 2022, the demand from the beginning of the year to date reached 800 tonnes, which is a new record for the council’s data series.
Investment demand during the quarter was 157 tonnes, an increase of 56% compared to last year, but it was weak compared to the five-year average.
The decline in demand in Europe led to a decrease in investment in bullion and gold coins in the third quarter of the year. Although the demand reached 296 tonnes, it increased compared to the previous quarter of the year and significantly exceeds the five-year average. Investment funds and gold ETFs continued to experience outflows in the third quarter of the year, largely driven by investors’ sentiment that interest rates will continue to rise.
However, the ongoing strength in off-exchange investment led to 120 tonnes in the third quarter of the year, partially driven by high net worth demand in Türkiye and some stock-building in other markets.
Demand for jewellery remained resilient in the face of rising gold prices, but there was a slight decline in jewellery purchases, which decreased by 2% year-on-year to 516 tonnes, due to cost-of-living pressures on consumers in many markets around the world.
The total global gold supply increased by 6% year-on-year in the third quarter of the year, with mine production reaching a record level since the beginning of the year at 2,744 tonnes. The continuing rise in gold price supported recycling to 289 tonnes, an increase of 8% year-on-year.
