Global gold market capitalisation exceeds $20 trillion
The capitalisation of the global gold market has passed $20.8 trillion, as uncertainty and inflation drive investors towards the metal.
Global gold market capitalisation exceeds $20 trillion.
The capitalisation of the global gold market has passed $20.8 trillion. Around 272,000 metric tonnes of gold have been discovered to date, including 217,000 metric tonnes mined over the course of history and 55,000 metric tonnes still held in underground reserves.
In 2024 global gold production reached 3,670 metric tonnes. A further 1,370 metric tonnes came from recycling. China retained its lead in world gold production in 2024, raising output by 0.6%, to 377 tonnes.
The rise in the price of gold is driven above all by uncertainty in the world economy, rising inflation, weak retail sales in Western countries including the United States, the trade and technology wars that have broken out between the largest global players, growing national debt and, of course, geopolitical uncertainty.
Amid such global uncertainty, gold is strengthening rapidly as a safe-haven asset for international investors and states. The price of gold has risen by more than 14% since the start of the year. A number of major investment banks are raising their end-of-year forecasts for the metal. The largest Swiss bank, UBS Group, which manages capital of $5 trillion, expects gold to trade at around $3,200 an ounce. The Australian investment bank Macquarie Group forecasts that gold will rise to $3,500 in the second quarter. The French financial conglomerate BNP Paribas expects the average gold price to exceed $3,000. Today gold is trading at $3,041 an ounce on the spot market.