Central Banks Load Up on Gold as It Hits Record Highs

For many goods, the more expensive they get, the less people want to buy them. But for gold, the reverse sometimes seems to be true.

When gold prices are depressed, it can be hard to try to sell gold, as many people may think that it’s going nowhere quickly. But when gold prices soar, it seems like everyone wants to get on the bandwagon.

That’s not just the case for individual gold buyers, who have been flocking to gold in recent months in search of a safe haven. That’s also true for central banks, who continue to buy gold in large amounts.

Central Bank Gold Sales Climb

Central banks have been buying gold in record amounts in recent years. 2022 saw record central bank gold purchases of 1,080 tonnes, followed by a minor dip in 2023.

But 2024 saw a return to a new record high of 1089.4 tonnes of central bank gold purchases, despite the average gold price being 33% higher in 2024 than it was in 2022.

While this year has seen moderately lower central bank gold buying than last year, possibly due to the fact that the average gold price is now 45% higher than it was in 2024, central banks are still buying gold in large amounts, with the third quarter of 2025 seeing 219.9 tonnes of gold purchases.

The trend doesn’t look right now like 2025 will set another record, but neither did 2024. However, a massive 365.1 tonnes of gold purchases in the fourth quarter of 2024 pushed central bank gold purchases last year to an annual record.

October of this year saw continued central bank gold buying, with another 53 tonnes added to central bank reserves. Could central banks surprise us with another late-year buying surge and push 2025 to near-record levels of gold purchases?

Record-High Gold Prices Not Discouraging Gold Buying

It isn’t just central banks who are stocking up on gold. Individuals and institutions are doing the same thing, and possibly for the same reasons. Just like central banks are possibly buying gold strategically, adding to gold reserves to help protect themselves against economic uncertainty, so too are individuals and institutions looking to buy gold to help safeguard themselves during a time of economic uncertainty.

According to the World Gold Council, gold investment demand has climbed to over 1,560 tonnes through the first three quarters of 2025, a 33% increase since 2024, and we still have one quarter of gold buying data to come.

If gold purchases continue at this pace, it could set a record, exceeding the previous annual high of 1805.3 tonnes that we saw in 2020. This would be despite the average gold price being twice as high this year as it was in 2020.

Of course, not all sectors of gold buying are unaffected by these higher prices. Demand for gold from the jewelry industry is down pretty significantly, which makes sense, as higher gold prices raise the cost of making gold jewelry.

But that’s just one sector of the gold market, and the dip in jewelry sector demand is more than being made up by demand elsewhere. Overall gold demand through the first three quarters of 2025 was already 10% higher than through the first three quarters of 2024, which means that 2025 could end up seeing significantly higher gold demand than 2024.

Gold demand through the first three quarters of 2025 is also almost as high as the first three quarters of 2011, which was the highest year on record for total gold demand. So it’s possible that 2025 could see a record amount of gold demand, even with prices having recently hit record highs that are more than double what they were in 2011.

Are You Ready to Buy Gold?

If record high gold prices haven’t dissuaded central banks from buying gold, why should they dissuade you? After all, if you’re looking for a safe haven asset or a hedge against financial uncertainty, why not take a look at gold?

Gold’s price performance from 2008 to 2011 was nothing short of phenomenal, with the gold price nearly tripling from its 2008 lows to its 2011 highs. And that wasn’t the first time gold has performed spectacularly during times of financial upheaval.

Through the stagflation of the 1970s gold’s annualized growth rate was over 30% per year over the course of the decade, and adjusted for inflation was still an annualized growth rate of over 20% per year.

Many people today still remember 2020, and how gold was one of the first safe haven assets people fled to during that time of uncertainty. The gold price shot up as a result of safe haven buying, and it has hardly looked back since.

If the US economy really is on the brink of some financial turndown or recession, as some people think, would it really be surprising if gold continued to rise from its current all-time highs? And if the gold price does continue to climb, wouldn’t you want to take advantage of that?

There are numerous ways to add gold to your portfolio, whether you want to make a direct cash purchase of gold coins or gold bars, or whether you want to move existing retirement savings into a gold IRA to put physical gold into a tax-advantaged retirement account.

Goldco has helped thousands of Americans benefit from owning precious metals like gold and silver, and our over $3 billion in precious metals placements and over 8,000 5-star reviews are a testament to the trust our customers place in us as one of America’s best gold companies.

If you’re looking to help safeguard your savings with gold in the coming year and are looking for a gold company you can trust, give Goldco a call today.