Central Bank Gold Buying
How much gold the world's central banks are adding to their reserves, counted from the holdings they report to the IMF each month: the net total, who is buying and selling, and who holds the most.
Latest reading
In the 12 months to July 2026, the 76 central banks reporting to the IMF added a net 290 t of gold, about the same as the 296 t of the year before. Poland (+125 t), China (+66 t) and Kazakhstan (+61 t) bought the most, together 87% of the net total. Russia (−53 t) and Turkey (−21 t) were the largest sellers. These are reported holdings only, which leave out the unreported buying that industry estimates include.
Sources, methodology & freshnessIMF International Reserves and Foreign Currency Liquidity (IRFCL): gold volume in fine troy ounces, monetary authorities and central government combined · Monthly, about two months after month end; checked dailyData as of 2026-10-05 · Open ↓Close ↑
Reported net official buying over the latest 12 months: about the same as the year before and below the 2010–2021 average of 325 t a year.
Net official gold buying, rolling 12 months
The sum of every reporting country's change in holdings over the trailing 12 months. Reported official sales outweighed purchases in every year from 2000 to 2008. Buying has led in every full year since 2009. The 12-month total peaked at 609 t in the year to September 2019 and stood at +290 t in the year to July 2026.
Month by month
Net buying by month for the last two years, with the largest single buyer and seller in each. August 2026 is still filling in (64 countries so far, against about 78 in a complete month), so its total will change.
| Month | Net | Largest buyer | Largest seller | Reporters |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 2026partial | +41 t | China +20 t | Russia −6.2 t | 64 |
| Jul 2026 | +69 t | Turkey +43 t | Russia −6.2 t | 76 |
| Jun 2026 | +45 t | Poland +19 t | Russia −9.3 t | 76 |
| May 2026 | +34 t | Poland +18 t | Russia −6.2 t | 77 |
| Apr 2026 | +66 t | Turkey +39 t | Russia −6.2 t | 78 |
| Mar 2026 | −112 t | Poland +11 t | Turkey −129 t | 78 |
| Feb 2026 | +27 t | Poland +20 t | Russia −6.2 t | 79 |
| Jan 2026 | +15 t | Turkey +10 t | Russia −9.3 t | 79 |
| Dec 2025 | +17 t | Kazakhstan +8.0 t | Singapore −11 t | 79 |
| Nov 2025 | +41 t | Poland +12 t | Jordan −1.8 t | 78 |
| Oct 2025 | +33 t | Brazil +16 t | Australia −5.0 t | 77 |
| Sep 2025 | +41 t | Brazil +15 t | — | 78 |
| Aug 2025 | +16 t | Kazakhstan +7.7 t | Russia −3.1 t | 78 |
| Jul 2025 | +15 t | Turkey +4.5 t | — | 78 |
| Jun 2025 | +11 t | Kazakhstan +7.4 t | Singapore −5.6 t | 79 |
| May 2025 | +30 t | Turkey +14 t | Singapore −5.4 t | 79 |
| Apr 2025 | +23 t | Poland +12 t | — | 79 |
| Mar 2025 | +37 t | Poland +16 t | Singapore −4.8 t | 79 |
| Feb 2025 | +31 t | Poland +29 t | Kazakhstan −8.1 t | 80 |
| Jan 2025 | +8.5 t | China +5.0 t | Russia −3.1 t | 80 |
| Dec 2024 | +0.8 t | China +10 t | Kazakhstan −11 t | 80 |
| Nov 2024 | +56 t | Poland +21 t | Singapore −5.2 t | 80 |
| Oct 2024 | +42 t | India +14 t | — | 82 |
| Sep 2024 | +39 t | Poland +22 t | Kazakhstan −3.8 t | 81 |
| Aug 2024 | +3.2 t | Turkey +7.3 t | Kazakhstan −5.2 t | 81 |
Year by year
The largest reported year was 2019, at +501 t. In 2025, the last full year, reporters added 302 t, 16 countries bought half a tonne or more and 4 sold as much. 2026 so far (7 months): +143 t.
| Year | Net | Buyers | Sellers | Largest buyer | Largest seller |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20267 mo | +143 t | 19 | 4 | Poland +90 t | Russia −50 t |
| 2025 | +302 t | 16 | 4 | Poland +102 t | Singapore −26 t |
| 2024 | +249 t | 11 | 7 | Poland +90 t | Philippines −29 t |
| 2023 | +364 t | 13 | 5 | China +225 t | Turkey −60 t |
| 2022 | +252 t | 14 | 7 | Turkey +129 t | Kazakhstan −51 t |
| 2021 | +346 t | 20 | 6 | Thailand +90 t | Turkey −59 t |
| 2020 | +248 t | 15 | 5 | Turkey +163 t | Mongolia −15 t |
| 2019 | +501 t | 18 | 4 | Russia +159 t | Australia −20 t |
| 2018 | +353 t | 14 | 8 | Russia +274 t | Turkey −76 t |
| 2017 | +471 t | 10 | 3 | Russia +224 t | Germany −4.3 t |
| 2016 | +176 t | 7 | 7 | Russia +199 t | Turkey −138 t |
| 2015 | +337 t | 10 | 9 | Russia +208 t | Turkey −14 t |
| 2014 | +215 t | 7 | 6 | Russia +172 t | Ukraine −19 t |
| 2013 | +297 t | 10 | 3 | Turkey +160 t | Germany −4.2 t |
| 2012 | +397 t | 10 | 2 | Turkey +164 t | Germany −5.0 t |
| 2011 | +405 t | 12 | 1 | Mexico +99 t | Germany −4.7 t |
| 2010 | +156 t | 4 | 6 | Russia +140 t | Germany −5.8 t |
| 2009 | +34 t | 6 | 6 | Russia +129 t | France −57 t |
| 2008 | −176 t | 8 | 8 | Russia +69 t | France −111 t |
| 2007 | −484 t | 6 | 13 | Russia +49 t | Switzerland −145 t |
| 2006 | −345 t | 5 | 13 | Russia +15 t | France −106 t |
| 2005 | −578 t | 4 | 16 | Poland +9.6 t | France −159 t |
| 2004 | −441 t | 3 | 11 | Argentina +55 t | Switzerland −279 t |
| 2003 | −583 t | 3 | 12 | Thailand +2.2 t | Switzerland −283 t |
| 2002 | −408 t | 2 | 11 | Philippines +23 t | Switzerland −282 t |
| 2001 | −444 t | 6 | 11 | Philippines +23 t | Switzerland −221 t |
| 2000 | −111 t | 6 | 4 | South Africa +31 t | United Kingdom −93 t |
Buyers and sellers count countries whose holdings rose or fell by half a tonne or more in the year. Partial years are marked with the number of complete months.
Largest buyers, 12 months to Jul 2026
| Country | 12 months | Year before | Since 2022 | Holdings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poland | +125 t | +124 t | +409 t | 640 t |
| China | +66 t | +36 t | +418 t | 2,366 t |
| Kazakhstan | +61 t | +14 t | −33 t | 370 t |
| Brazil | +43 t | 0.0 t | +43 t | 172 t |
| Czech Republic | +21 t | +20 t | +74 t | 84 t |
| Guatemala | +8.7 t | 0.0 t | +8.6 t | 16 t |
| Indonesia | +8.5 t | 0.0 t | +8.5 t | 87 t |
| Jordan | +6.2 t | −1.8 t | +14 t | 79 t |
| Malaysia | +5.9 t | 0.0 t | +5.9 t | 45 t |
| Serbia | +4.0 t | +4.0 t | +17 t | 55 t |
| Philippines | +3.1 t | −0.7 t | −25 t | 134 t |
| Cambodia | +2.9 t | +12 t | +6.8 t | 57 t |
Largest sellers
| Country | 12 months | Year before | Since 2022 | Holdings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Russia | −53 t | −6.2 t | −25 t | 2,277 t |
| Turkey | −21 t | +58 t | +115 t | 772 t |
| Germany | −1.0 t | −1.3 t | −9.8 t | 3,349 t |
| Singapore | −0.6 t | −25 t | +50 t | 204 t |
Net change in reported holdings, tonnes. “Year before” is the 12 months ending Jul 2025. Countries whose latest report is older than Jul 2026 show their last month.
The countries in the story
- China bought 66 t in the 12 months to Jul 2026, against +36 t the year before. Since January 2022 its holdings have changed by +418 t, to 2,366 t.
- Poland bought 125 t in the 12 months to Jul 2026, against +124 t the year before. Since January 2022 its holdings have changed by +409 t, to 640 t.
- India bought 0.5 t in the 12 months to Jul 2026, against +34 t the year before. Since January 2022 its holdings have changed by +127 t, to 881 t.
- Turkey sold 21 t in the 12 months to Jul 2026, against +58 t the year before. Since January 2022 its holdings have changed by +115 t, to 772 t.
- Russia sold 53 t in the 12 months to Jul 2026, against −6.2 t the year before. Since January 2022 its holdings have changed by −25 t, to 2,277 t.
- Czech Republic bought 21 t in the 12 months to Jul 2026, against +20 t the year before. Since January 2022 its holdings have changed by +74 t, to 84 t.
- Kazakhstan bought 61 t in the 12 months to Jul 2026, against +14 t the year before. Since January 2022 its holdings have changed by −33 t, to 370 t.
Largest official gold holders
Reporting countries hold 31,037 t between them as of July 2026. The 20 largest, with their latest reported holdings:
| Country | 12 months | Year before | Since 2022 | Holdings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | 0.0 t | 0.0 t | 0.0 t | 8,134 t |
| Germany | −1.0 t | −1.3 t | −9.8 t | 3,349 t |
| Italy | 0.0 t | 0.0 t | 0.0 t | 2,452 t |
| France | +0.0 t | +0.0 t | +0.5 t | 2,437 t |
| China | +66 t | +36 t | +418 t | 2,366 t |
| Russia | −53 t | −6.2 t | −25 t | 2,277 t |
| Switzerland | 0.0 t | 0.0 t | −0.1 t | 1,040 t |
| India | +0.5 t | +34 t | +127 t | 881 t |
| Japan | 0.0 t | 0.0 t | 0.0 t | 846 t |
| Turkey | −21 t | +58 t | +115 t | 772 t |
| Poland | +125 t | +124 t | +409 t | 640 t |
| Netherlands | 0.0 t | 0.0 t | 0.0 t | 612 t |
| European Central Bank | +1.9 t | 0.0 t | +3.7 t | 508 t |
| Portugal | 0.0 t | 0.0 t | +0.1 t | 383 t |
| Kazakhstan | +61 t | +14 t | −33 t | 370 t |
| Saudi Arabia | 0.0 t | 0.0 t | 0.0 t | 323 t |
| United Kingdom | 0.0 t | 0.0 t | 0.0 t | 310 t |
| Spain | 0.0 t | 0.0 t | 0.0 t | 282 t |
| Austria | +0.0 t | 0.0 t | +0.0 t | 280 t |
| Thailand | +0.0 t | +0.0 t | −9.5 t | 235 t |
What this count includes and leaves out
These are reported holdings. 76 countries filed gold holdings for July 2026, out of 86 that have ever reported monthly; a complete month usually has about 78. Not yet in for July 2026: Egypt (last May 2026, 130 t) and Paraguay (last Mar 2026, 8.2 t). No longer reporting monthly: Bolivia (last Oct 2021, 43 t), Kyrgyz Republic (last Feb 2025, 36 t) and Slovakia (last Jun 2025, 32 t).
Some central banks buy gold without reporting it to the IMF, or report through a different channel. Industry estimates such as the World Gold Council's central-bank demand figure add an estimate of that unreported buying, so the totals here can be far below the widely quoted ones. Read this page for who is buying in the open record, and for the direction of the pace.
Unit repairs: Angola (70 months) and Brazil (6 months) filed ounces a factor of 1,000 out of line with the dollar value of the same holdings, and are rescaled.
How it is computed, and why there is no price study
Each country's holdings come from the IMF's reserves template in fine troy ounces, for the central bank and central government combined. A month's net buying is the sum of every country's change from its previous report, converted at 32,150.7 ounces to a tonne. A country's first report adds nothing, and gaps of up to three months are booked to the later month. The euro-area aggregate is excluded; the European Central Bank is counted as a holder.
We do not publish what the gold price did after buying surges. The reported record holds only a handful of independent multi-year buying waves, too few to separate the effect of official buying from real yields, the dollar and investor flows, which moved gold in the same years. For gold's own declines and how they ended, see the gold drawdown study.
Reported net official buying over the latest 12 months: about the same as the year before and below the 2010–2021 average of 325 t a year.
How Central Bank Gold Buying Works
- 1Official holdings in ouncesEach month, central banks report their gold reserves to the IMF in fine troy ounces as part of the International Reserves and Foreign Currency Liquidity template. We read the combined holdings of the central bank and the central government, the whole official sector, for every reporting country and convert ounces to metric tonnes (32,150.7 ounces to a tonne).
- 2Buying is the change in holdingsA country's net purchase in a month is the change in its reported ounces from its previous report. Summing those changes across reporters gives net official buying. A country's first report adds nothing, and countries that stop reporting drop out of later months.
- 3Only complete months countCountries report about two months after the month ends, and not all at once. The latest month on the page is the newest one in which at least 90% of the usual number of countries has reported. Newer months are shown as still filling in.
- 4Unit errors are repaired from dollar valuesCountries also report the dollar value of their gold. When a filing's ounces are a factor of 1,000 out of line with that dollar value, the ounces were filed in the wrong unit and are rescaled. The page lists the countries this touched.