China has increased its gold holdings for five consecutive months

The People's Bank of China has increased its gold reserves for the fifth consecutive month, with a month-on-month growth of 0.15%. The foreign exchange reserves rose in March. On Monday, April 7, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange announced that China's gold reserves at the end of March were 73.7 million ounces, up from 73.61 million ounces at the end of February, an increase of 90,000 ounces or 0.15%. According to statistics from the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, as of the end of March 2025, China's foreign exchange reserves stood at USD 32,407 billion, an increase of USD 13.4 billion from the end of February, with a growth rate of 0.42%. The State Administration of Foreign Exchange stated that in March 2025, influenced by macroeconomic data, fiscal and monetary policies, and expectations from major economies, the US dollar index fell, leading to a general decline in global financial asset prices. The combined effects of exchange rate conversions and asset price changes contributed to the increase in foreign exchange reserves for the month. The overall operation of China's economy remains stable, with steady progress, and the implementation of a package of stock and incremental policies continues to show results, providing support for the basic stability of foreign exchange reserves. As of the time of writing, the spot gold price is USD 3,047.76 per ounce. Last month, gold prices reached a new high of over USD 3,100 per ounce, with a cumulative increase of 19% in the first quarter. Although the market has sold off nearly all assets, including gold, due to Trump's unexpectedly high tariff policies, gold has erased some of its gains in recent days. However, it is expected that central bank purchases and global ETF inflows will continue to support gold prices this year. As Trump's tariffs and other policies bring unprecedented uncertainty to the global economy, central banks around the world are seeking to diversify their reserves by increasing their gold holdings. Haitong Securities believes that under policy uncertainty, the safe-haven properties of gold have played an increasingly important role. The influence of global central bank gold purchases on gold prices has significantly increased since 2022. Currently, gold prices are not significantly overvalued. In an optimistic scenario, gold prices may break through USD 3,800 per ounce