Turkey continues to lead the world in gold purchases
Turkey maintained its position as the largest buyer of gold in the world during the last period, as it bought 23 tons of gold in January, according to Bloomberg Agency, raising its balance to 565 tons, which is the highest level it has ever reached, according to data from the Gold Council. Global.
For several months, Turkey has been resisting the weakness of its currency and the high rate of inflation in the country by hedging by buying gold, and the Turkish Central Bank was the largest buyer of the metal among central banks around the world last year.
In general, central banks around the world added 31 net tons of gold to their reserves last January, recording purchases of the precious metal, an increase of 16% over the previous month.
After the Turkish Central Bank, the People’s Bank of China, then the National Bank of Kazakhstan, came as the largest buyers of the commodity, after adding 15 tons and 4 tons, respectively.
Turkish families also often resort to acquiring gold, in an attempt to alleviate the inflationary pressures on them, as the inflation rate in some periods of the past year exceeded 80%.
Over the past month, Turkey has temporarily halted some gold imports, as part of an emergency plan to mitigate the economic fallout from the devastating earthquakes.
The Turkish government is trying to limit gold imports, which is seen as the biggest threat to the deterioration of external financial conditions, as it is imported in foreign currency, which increases pressure on the country’s current account.
And last January, Swiss customs data showed that the country’s gold exports to countries, including China, Turkey, Singapore, Thailand and Saudi Arabia, increased during 2022, to levels not seen in several years, as the price decline boosted consumer demand in Asia and the Middle East.
The lack of economic stability has increased the demand for gold, which many consider a safe investment, especially in Turkey, with very high levels of inflation.
Swiss customs data showed that the country exported 188 tons to Turkey during the past year, compared to 11 tons in 2021, reaching the highest level ever since registration began in 2012.
Turkey’s current account deficit widened during 2022, to record $48.8 billion, of which gold imports accounted for more than $20 billion.
According to World Gold Council data, Turkey’s interest in buying gold was not driven by high demand from retail customers. The country’s central bank was the most prominent official buyer of gold in 2022, buying 148 tons.
According to ceicdata.com, the Turkish gold reserves recorded a value of more than $45 billion by the end of 2022.
It is estimated that Turks have about 5,000 tons of gold in their homes, worth more than $300 billion at current international prices, according to estimates by the Turkish government, which hopes to get it into the formal financial system.
