Central Bankers Are Still Flocking to Gold After Record Bull Run

Central banks have emerged as a driving force behind the record-breaking bull market for gold, and while the true scale of their buying is shrouded in mystery, nobody expects them to stop.

Globally, they are accumulating roughly 80 metric tons of gold a month, worth about $8.5 billion at current prices, analysts at Goldman Sachs estimate. Most of the buying is secret, although trade data indicates China accounts for a lot of the purchases, along with other unidentified buyers via Switzerland.

Taken together, central banks and sovereign wealth funds have been mopping up 1,000 tons a year, at least a quarter of annual mined ...