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Hard Assets
Central Bank Gold Purchases
The net volume of gold bars and coins purchased by global central banks for their official reserve portfolios. This is a primary driver of the "non-Western" bid for gold, as nations (led by China, India, and Turkey) seek to diversify away from USD-denominated assets and the SWIFT settlement system.
Why It Matters
Central bank gold buying hit multi-decade highs in 2022–2023. This "institutional bid" creates a structural floor under gold prices that is disconnected from traditional real rate correlations. It is a lead indicator of geopolitical fragmentation and de-dollarization.
Tracked via Dashboard Metrics
De-Dollarization
Foreign Exchange Reserves
USD Reserve Share
Related Concepts
M2/Gold Ratio
A valuation metric comparing total global M2 money supply to the market capitalisation of all above-ground gold (quantity × spot price). When M2 expands faster than the gold price, the ratio rises — indicating fiat currency debasement without corresponding hard asset appreciation. Historically, extreme readings in either direction have been followed by reversion.Debt/Gold Z-Score
A proprietary ratio comparing total US Federal Debt to the dollar value of US officially-reported gold reserves at current spot prices, normalised as a Z-score against a 25-year rolling window. It measures how many "gold equivalents" the US government would need to redeem its entire debt — a thought experiment derived from the classical gold standard era.Gold/Silver Ratio
The number of ounces of silver required to purchase one ounce of gold at current spot prices. The long-run historical average is approximately 55–65x. Extreme readings above 90x have historically—in 1991, 2003, 2009, and 2020—preceded significant silver outperformance as the ratio mean-reverts. Industrial silver demand growth (solar panels, EVs) creates an additional structural tailwind.Ready to see this live?
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