Global central banks purchased 321 tons of gold in Q3 2026 — 42% more than a year earlier. State demand keeps the metal's price at a high level, which benefits long-term investors, but private buyers are increasingly rarely purchasing bars, coins, and jewelry.
Regulators are buying up the metal more actively than a year ago, and exchange-traded funds have brought their holdings to an all-time record: large institutional players are offsetting the slump in the retail segment. The main risk is concentrated in the jewelry industry, where consumption in tons has fallen to a historic quarterly low.
Who is increasing positions and who is cutting demand
Since the start of the year, central banks have purchased 675 tons of gold — 6% more than in the same period of 2025. The quarterly volume of regulator purchases was the highest since Q4 2024.
Total global gold demand in Q3 declined by 1% year-on-year to 1,369 tons, but due to the metal's appreciation, in monetary terms it rose by 22% to $188 billion. Investors supported the market through exchange-traded funds backed by physical gold: their holdings increased by 211 tons during the quarter and reached a record 4,256 tons.
Retail demand, by contrast, fell: purchases of bars and coins declined by 19% to 268 tons, and only China showed growth of 7%. Consumption in the jewelry sector dropped by 17% to 313 tons, setting a historic quarterly low, although buyers' spending on jewelry rose to $43 billion.
Demand from the technology sector, unlike retail, grew by 3% and reached 85 tons — the highest since late 2021. The electronics segment added 5% to 72 tons: the driver is the development of production facilities for artificial intelligence.
Total gold supply declined by 1% to 1,369 tons, although mine production grew by 3% and reached a record 1,071 tons for Q3. The decline is due to recycling: its volume fell by 8% to 314 tons — the lowest since Q4 2023.
Why gold is getting cheaper despite central bank purchases
In October, gold fell in price by more than 6%, posting its worst October since 2008, even though central banks and exchange-traded funds were actively building up holdings in Q3. An ounce at the close of trading on October 30 cost $3,875, and the gap between state demand and price dynamics is explained by the behavior of short-term market participants.
For the fifth consecutive week, speculators have been dumping gold and since September 22 have sold off positions worth $19.5 billion. Analysts allow for further sell-offs, but at the same time central banks and China continue to form steady demand, so the decline gives long-term investors a chance to buy the metal cheaper.
Cryptalist analysis: The gold market demonstrates a classic divergence between strategic and tactical capital: institutional buyers are using the correction to build up long-term positions, while speculative flows determine short-term price dynamics. Such a demand structure has historically formed stable support over a horizon of several quarters, and the weakness of the retail and jewelry segments signals pressure from high prices on physical demand. For the cryptocurrency market, this is an indicator of large players' continued interest in defensive assets amid uncertainty in traditional finance.