Customers choose gold ornaments at a shop in Shanghai on October 5, 2025, during the National Day holidays. Photo: VCG

As international gold prices rise, the per-gram prices of gold jewelry from multiple domestic brands hit new record highs on Wednesday, exceeding 1,160 yuan ($162.93) per gram in many cases. 

Lao Miao Gold's jewelry price reached 1,160 yuan per gram, Chow Tai Fook's price reached 1,162 yuan per gram, and Chow Sang Sang's pure gold jewelry was priced at 1,165 yuan per gram, according to their official websites. 


On the basement level of SKP's Beijing department store, gold jewelry stores attracted many customers. Wang Juan, an employee of China Gold, told the Global Times on Wednesday that the best-selling items are gold bars ranging from 10 to 100 grams, largely driven by investment demand, as gold prices are rising quickly.

A customer surnamed Song was considering gold jewelry at a counter of Caibai Jewelry. She had her eye on a gold bracelet weighing more than 30 grams, intended for her wedding anniversary gift. 

She told the Global Times that the current price is still acceptable, and she plans to proceed with the purchase.

Domestic gold prices rose as the metal extended its historic rally to break above $4,000 an ounce for the first time on Wednesday.

Spot gold jumped 1.2 percent to $4,032.46 per ounce as of 6:53 am GMT. US gold futures for December delivery climbed 1.3 percent to $4,054.80 per ounce, Reuters reported. 

Traditionally, gold is seen as a store of value during times of instability. As one of the best-performing assets of 2025, spot gold is up 53 percent year-to-date after rising 27 percent in 2024, Reuters reported. 

Amid global geopolitical uncertainties, investors have been flocking to gold as a safe haven. Market expectations of imminent interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve, along with steady gold purchases by central banks worldwide, have contributed to the recent surge in gold prices, Zhang Yi, CEO of the iiMedia Research Institute, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

In early January and April, international gold prices experienced two rounds of rapid increases, climbing swiftly from $2,600 per ounce at the beginning of the year to $3,400 per ounce, reported thepaper.cn on Wednesday.  

After a four-month period of consolidation around $3,300 per ounce, spot gold broke through the $3,500 per ounce mark on September 2, and surged to a historic high of $3,600 per ounce on September 6. 

Just 10 days later, on September 16, spot gold prices in London reached $3,700 per ounce, and on September 23, they broke through the $3,800 per ounce mark. On October 6, gold prices surpassed $3,900 per ounce.
 
So far this year, international gold prices have risen by more than 50 percent. Central banks worldwide continue to purchase gold. 

Data released by China's central bank on Tuesday showed that China's gold reserves reached 74.06 million ounces at the end of September, marking the 11th consecutive month of increases, compared with 74.02 million ounces at the end of August.

On September 25, UBS released a report stating it believes that gold prices may have further room to rise, as US real interest rates are expected to decline further amid potential additional monetary easing by the Federal Reserve and persistently high inflation, which would be favorable for gold.

The sentiment for chasing the rally persists, primarily driven by central banks' increased gold reserves and reduced reliance on US dollar-denominated assets, Zhang said.

He added that it could see a further rise of the gold price as the Spring Festival period traditionally marks a peak season for gold consumption.