Customers select gold jewelry at a gold shop in Qingzhou, East China's Shandong Province on November 1, 2026. International gold prices fell to a one-year low on October 30. Some brands' prices having fallen by nearly 550 yuan ($82.57) per gram from their intra-year highs, according to CCTV News. Photo: CNS Photo

China's gold consumption totaled 684.623 tons in the first three quarters of 2026, up 0.28 percent year-on-year, data from the China Gold Association showed on Wednesday. 

And, China's central bank added a total of 103.26 tons to its gold reserves during the same period, with the country's total gold holdings standing at 2,409.59 tons as of the end of September, ranking fifth globally. 

From November 2024 through September 2026, Chinese central bank has increased its gold reserves for 23 consecutive months, the data showed. 

In terms of retail sales, Chinese investors in particular like buying gold bars and coins, with consumption of those items jumping 26.26 percent year-on-year to 444.576 tons in the first three quarters, the data showed. Also, the consumption of gold jewelry reached 178.612 tons, down 33.86 percent year-on-year, while that of industrial and other uses rose 1.41 percent to 61.434 tons.

"China's domestic gold consumption market showed marked structural divergence in the first three quarters. Driven by elevated gold prices and new gold tax policies, the gap between gold bars and coins on one side, and gold jewelry on the other continued to widen. Meanwhile, sales of gold investment products also underwent a structural shift, with direct sales gradually replacing the dealer model," the association said in a post on its official website on Wednesday.

With regards to investment, domestic gold exchange-traded fund (ETFs) saw cumulative net inflows of 56.114 tons in the first nine months, down 28.98 percent year-on-year. As of the end of September, holdings in domestic gold ETFs stood at 303.965 tons.

Globally, central banks and other official institutions added a net 321 tons to reserves in the third quarter, up 42 percent year-on-year and the highest quarterly total since the fourth quarter of 2024, with portfolio diversification and risk management remaining the primary demand drivers. Year-to-date purchases of 675 tons are now 6 percent higher than in the same period last year, according to the World Gold Council's Q3 2026 Gold Demand Trends report released on Tuesday.

Though the global demand for gold bars and coins dropped 19 percent year-on-year to 268 tons - falling back as individual investors stayed on the sideline due to a lack of clear direction on the gold price - China was the clear outlier with demand up 7 percent year-on-year, the report said.

Global Times