On November 3, the World Gold Council released its Gold Demand Trends report for the third quarter of 2026, showing that total gold demand, including over-the-counter trading, fell 1% year-on-year to 1,369 tonnes.
Demand for the year to date reached 3,881 tonnes, nearly matching the all-time record of 3,884 tonnes set in 2025, while the value of that demand hit a new record of US$566 billion.
Central bank purchases jumped to 321 tonnes in the third quarter, exceeding the typical quarterly buying pace seen recently and pushing year-to-date demand to 675 tonnes, up 6% year-on-year.
Gold ETFs reversed the outflows seen in the second quarter, adding 211 tonnes in the third quarter. The inflows appeared to be driven mainly by concerns over fiscal sustainability and inflation.
Bar and coin investors were more cautious; as investors waited for a clearer price trend to emerge, global demand fell 19% year-on-year to 268 tonnes.
Jewellery demand declined 17% year-on-year to 313 tonnes, the weakest third-quarter reading in the data series, with high prices continuing to weigh on all markets. The value of that demand rose 2% year-on-year to US$43 billion.
In the technology sector, gold usage rose 3% year-on-year in the third quarter, as demand from artificial-intelligence-related manufacturing outweighed the restrictive effect of high gold prices.
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