According to the World Gold Council, gold demand rose to an 11-year peak in 2022 due to “colossal central banks purchases, supported by vigorous retail investor purchasing.”

The annual gold demand rose 18% to 4,741 tonnes (excluding OTC trading), the highest annual figure since 2011. This was fueled by record Q4 demand of 1,337 tons. 2022 saw a record annual average LBMA Gold Price PM of US$1,800/oz. The industry-backed group revealed that central banks bought 1,136 tons, a record high for 55 years. However, most of these purchases were not reported.

This was a 152% increase over 2021 when central banks purchased only 450 tons of gold. The World Gold Council blamed the spike on high inflation and geopolitical uncertainty.

Across other types of gold consumption categories, Jewelry consumption softened a little in 2022, down by 3% at 2,086 t. Much of the weakness came through in the Q4 as the gold price surged. Investment demand (excluding OTC) reached 1,107 tons (+10%) in 2022. Demand for gold bars and coins grew 2% to 1,217 tons, while holdings of gold ETFs fell by a smaller amount than in 2021 (-110 t vs. -189 t), which further contributed to total investment growth.