Eastern Gold Buying Spree Continues
Russia and Kazakhstan continued their gold buying spree in November, and Turkey added to its reserves as well. Meanwhile, India is on pace for a healthy increase in gold imports this year.
It was the 38th straight month of increasing gold reserves for Kazakhstan, according to Bloomberg:
Kazakhstan raised its stash to 7.03 million ounces in November from 6.96 million ounces a month earlier and Russia boosted assets to 44.78 million ounces from 44.07 million ounces, data on the IMF’s website showed. Turkey’s reserves increased to 16.39 million ounces from 16.10 million ounces.”
Russia’s November gold buy follows on the heels of a 34.2 ton increase in its holdings of the precious metal in September, and a 1 million ounce increase in August. Russia boasts the world’s seventh largest gold reserve.
Meanwhile, China continued to add to its reserves as well. As we reported earlier this month, the Chinese upped their stash of the yellow metal an estimated 21 tons last month, the largest increase in at least five months.
These November numbers continue a broader trend of central banks buying gold. According to Bloomberg, world-wide central bank gold purchases in the third quarter of 2015 were the second highest on record:
‘The buying trend will continue,’ Feifei Li, an analyst at Barclays Plc, said by e-mail before the data were released. Emerging market countries such as Russia, China and Kazakhstan ‘have a long-term need to increase their reserves due to portfolio and strategic reasons.’”
Many analysts believe these countries are increasing their gold holdings to minimize exposure to the US dollar. Victor Thianpiriya of Australia & New Zealand Banking Group Ltd. told Bloomberg many countries have been diversifying holdings away from the dollar for years.
Indians are also continue to buy gold. According to a report in the Economic Times, Indian gold imports are on pace to eclipse 1,000 tons this year. That represents an 11% increase over last year’s number. India had already imported 850 tons through September of this year. Imports via smuggling into India are estimated at around 100 tons.
Gold is the second largest import item for India after petroleum. The Indian government has been trying to entice people to monetize their gold in order to lower imports, but have not had much success. So far, the plan has attracted less than 1 kilogram per month. Indians simply value the metal too highly to give it up.
Central bankers, Indians and Chinese all understand that there are good reasons to buy gold and hold gold. For more information, get Peter Schiff’s report Why Buy Gold Now. You can download it for free HERE.
Get Peter Schiff’s most important Gold headlines once per week – click here – for a free subscription to his exclusive weekly email updates.
Interested in learning more about physical gold and silver?
Call 1-888-GOLD-160 and speak with a Precious Metals Specialist today!
Related Posts
We keep hearing about a “soft landing.” According to government officials, central bankers, and mainstream financial media pundits, the US economy has dodged a recession. So why are recession warning signs still flashing?Peter Schiff: Banks Have a Bigger Real Estate Problem Today Than They Did in 2007
Banks are more vulnerable to the housing market now than they were in 2007. Most people in the mainstream will scoff at that statement. They’ll tell you that the situation is very different today. After all, we don’t have a big problem in the subprime mortgage market. We’re not seeing a big spike in defaults. […]
Yet another country wants gold. On Monday (Sept. 25), the Bank of Tanzania (BoT) announced it is buying gold from domestic sources to establish its own reserves.Americans Worried About a Credit Crunch; What Happens When Consumers Can’t Charge It?
Americans are worried about a looming credit crunch. That’s a big problem for an economy that runs on credit cards. One of the reasons for economic optimism you’ll hear bandied about out there in the mainstream is “the American consumer is strong” and consumer spending is “holding up” despite price inflation. But nobody seems to […]
Last week, a federal grand jury indicted Democrat Senator Bob Menendez and his wife Nadine Arslanian Menendez on bribery charges. According to the indictment, the senator and his wife took bribes, including 13 gold bars, from three New Jersey businessmen with Egyptian ties.
So I can’t recall ever hearing about Canada or the United States or Mexico buying additional ounces of gold to hedge against economic uncertainties. One would assume in that case that the United States Canada and Mexico are just too stupid to see the writing on the wall. Or on the other hand maybe they intend to allow the entire system to unwind and create a global crisis that is unprecedented in the history of the United States. What a disappointment this country has become. expatriation is on my radar screen. so happy my wife has dual citizenship.
Russia is eastern now? The East is Asia. Do you see buddhists walking around the streets in Russia? Russia is a western christian country.
Ever take geography in school, or look at a map?
Could the West (USA, Britain, Europe etc) be collecting Silver and ‘letting’ the East collect Gold?
Surely Gold or Silver could back a currency. I get that Gold has 70+ ratio to Silver ……..TODAY. But if it went back to it’s historic average of about 16, PLUS the usage of Silver in industry etc, means there’s less of it than Gold (I BELIEVE), MAYBE the West will use Silver instead of Gold and thus Silver’s values BOOMS to parity-ISH with Gold and the West end up duping/beating the East………or similar??????????
Any thoughts???
It seems more likely than the West is so stupid it doesn’t see the end of the present Fiat system and is LETTING others get the head start on them, before the ‘reset’.
LOL The gooberment has to support the ponzi scam. But the public is waking up, the US mint can’t keep up with demand, and are intentionally shorting silver.