Gold buying by central banks surged to 60 tonnes in October, mainly led by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) which added 27 tonnes of the precious metal to its reserves, the World Gold Council (WGC) said on Thursday.

India added 27 tonnes of gold in October, bringing its total gold purchases to 77 tonnes from January to October, according WGC data based on reported monthly data from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

This buying by RBI represents a five-fold increase as compared to the same period of 2023, said WGC.

According to the data, with this purchase the total gold reserve of India is now at 882 tonnes, of which 510 tonnes are held in India.

WGC further stated that emerging market central banks continued to dominate the market with Turkey and Poland adding 72 tonnes and 69 tonnes from January-October 2024, to their gold reserves, respectively.

These three central banks alone accounted for 60 per cent of total global net purchases reported this year, it added.

Meanwhile, the data further revealed that the Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey added 17 tonnes, making October the 17th consecutive month of net purchases and the highest reported monthly figure on record since December 2023.

October's figures have surpassed the quarterly total of April-June and July-September quarters, it said.

Further, it revealed that the National Bank of Poland recorded net buying of 8 tonnes during October, its seventh consecutive month of net buying.

The NBP's annual report highlights its commitment to accumulating gold, with the central bank targeting a 20 per cent allocation as a percentage of its total official reserve assets, it added.

The data further highlighted that the National Bank of Kazakhstan added 5 tonnes of gold to its reserves after five months of net selling, however, the country remains a net seller.

The Czech National Bank (CNB) added 2 tonnes of gold, making October its 20th consecutive month of net buying, it said adding that CNB has accumulated 37 tonnes of gold over the period increasing its total gold reserves to 49 tonnes.

Kyrgyzstan added 2 tonnes of gold to its reserves, bringing its y-t-d purchases close to 6 tonnes and making October the highest reported monthly net buying on record since September 2023.

Data made available by the Bank of Ghana, which purchased 1 tonne of gold in October, showed that its gold reserves now amount to 28 tonnes, the data stated. The country's gold reserves have increased steadily since May 2023, when they stood at just under 9 tonnes, WGC added.

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