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EconomyChina Economy

China’s central bank aids gold’s record-setting run with 11-month buying streak

Price of gold breaks benchmarks as uncertainty mounts over US dollar and central banks, including China’s, add to their stockpiles

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The price of gold continues to set records as central banks and global investors buy more of the safe-haven asset. Photo: Reuters
Sylvia Ma

Even after a record-setting run, the price of gold appears poised for further gains, as China’s central bank extended its buying streak to an 11th straight month and demand for the safe-haven asset continues to grow amid an ongoing US government shutdown.

Spot gold prices in London surpassed the benchmark US$4,000 per ounce on Wednesday morning, hitting a new high after an identical breach by gold futures in New York on Tuesday.
The surge comes as investors seek reliable sources of return in an unpredictable global economy. Assets backed by the US dollar, long regarded as safe bets, have lost some of their appeal, particularly as Washington marks the second week of a shutdown that has frozen most government services and delayed the release of crucial economic data.
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Per a report from Reuters, investment bank Goldman Sachs lifted its gold price forecast for December 2026 to US$4,900 per ounce from US$4,300 on Monday, citing inflows from Western exchange-traded funds and the likelihood of further central bank purchases.

Meanwhile, billionaire investor Ray Dalio said on Tuesday that gold is “certainly” a better safe haven than the US dollar, echoing similar comments from Citadel founder Ken Griffin.
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“Gold is a very excellent diversifier of the portfolio,” the founder of Bridgewater Associates said at the Greenwich Economic Forum in the US state of Connecticut, adding that investors should allocate “something like 15 per cent” of their portfolios to gold as an “optimal mix”.

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