Gold demand soars to new highs, marking first $100-bn quarter in Q3’24

Onome Amuge

Total gold demand, inclusive of over-the-counter (OTC) investments, surged five percent year-over-year (y/y) in the third quarter of 2024 to a record 1,313 metric tonnes, the World Gold Council (WGC) reported.

The surge in demand was mirrored in the price of gold, which skyrocketed to a series of all-time highs throughout the quarter. This is as the value of demand jumped 35 percent y/y, breaking the $100 billion mark for the first time ever.

According to the World Gold Council Gold Demand Trends report for the third quarter of 2024, the global gold exchange-traded fund (ETF) market saw an influx of 95 metric tonnes of gold, representing a marked reversal from the significant outflows experienced in the same quarter of 2023, with the third quarter of 2024 being the first positive quarter since the first quarter of 2022.

While investment in gold bars and coins decreased by 9 percent compared to the third quarter of 2023, resulting in a total investment of 269 metric tonnes, the overall decline was mostly driven by specific markets. India, however, demonstrated strong performance, which offset some of the decline in other key markets.

The third quarter of 2024 saw a sharp drop in gold jewelry consumption, falling 12 percent y/y to 459 metric tonnes, even though India’s market demonstrated solid growth. Despite the decrease in the quantity of gold jewelry purchased, spending on gold jewelry increased substantially by 13 percent y/y, reaching more than $36 billion.

The rate of central bank gold purchases decelerated in the third quarter at 186 metric tonnes, but year-to-date buying has remained on par with the levels seen in 2022, the World Gold Council noted.

Despite relatively low volume, gold usage in technology applications showed steady growth, increasing by 7 percent y/y to 83 metric tonnes. Artificial intelligence (AI) remains a key driver of this demand, as the tech industry continues to explore new applications of gold’s unique properties in areas such as electronics, medical devices, and aerospace engineering.

However, the outlook for the future growth of gold in technology remains cautious, as the pace of adoption is expected to be gradual.