China's Central Bank Adds Record Gold Reserves in July

China's central bank added 19.9 tonnes of gold in July, its largest single-month purchase since October 2023 and its 21st consecutive month of buying. The People's Bank of China lifted its official gold holdings to 76.08 million troy ounces at the end of July, up from 75.44 million ounces in June.

The mechanism behind this purchasing is not tactical but structural. China's gold holdings represent roughly 8 percent of its total official foreign-exchange assets, which is a multi-decade reserve management task to close an allocation gap.

Each month's purchase is one increment in this long rebalancing program. The PBOC did not stop buying because inflation came in slightly above expectations or because futures markets repriced September rate-hike odds.

The World Gold Council's Central Bank Gold Reserves Survey 2026 found that 89 percent of respondents expect global official gold reserves to increase over the next 12 months, and a record 45 percent plan to add gold to their own institutions' holdings.