Western retail demand for gold surges in rush for hard assets
In London’s historic Hatton Garden, where diamonds have long been the star, gold is commanding more attention. The famed jewellery district is abuzz with customers seeking bullion bars and coins, broadening the investor pool for tangible assets.
“There’s a mix of buying and selling gold, but buying is definitely stronger. Even though prices are high, people are still buying. Many believe prices will go even higher,” said Mashhood, a staff member at a local shop.
Spot gold hit a record high of $4,381 per ounce on Monday. Even though a steep selloff on Tuesday and Wednesday took it down 7% to around $4,076 per ounce, retail interest remains strong.
For Britain’s Royal Mint, the surge in investor appetite has translated into record-breaking activity. The Mint recorded its strongest single day of e-commerce trading this month, reflecting heightened demand for physical precious metals.
“The surge in demand has also led to exceptional individual transactions. We’re seeing roughly 60% existing customers and 40% new customers, with existing investors notably increasing their average order values and doubling down on their positions,” said Stuart O’Reilly, market insights manager at The Royal Mint.
Tax strategy
Customers are also exploring tax-efficient strategies. “I’m converting my gold bar into coins to avoid Capital Gains Tax (CGT). I’ll sell a portion but hold on to two-thirds, as I keep hearing everywhere that prices could rise further,” said Cherry Jephson, a customer at Hatton Garden.
In the UK, CGT applies to profits made from selling gold bars, which are treated as taxable assets. However, certain British gold coins, such as Sovereigns and Britannias, are classified as legal tender and are fully exempt from CGT.
Other regions
Traders and banks in Germany and Austria are also reporting exceptionally strong retail demand for physical gold.
“I saw long queues of customers both at the Viennese Shop of Ögussa as well as the Austrian Mint shop in the city centre. Traders in Germany report the same picture in front of their shops,” said Wolfgang Wrzesniok-Rossbach, founder of precious metals consultancy Fragold GmbH.
Gold’s retail investor appeal has grown sharply this year, driven by global economic uncertainty and rising geopolitical tension highlighting its safe-haven cachet. Prices have doubled over the past two years and are up 55% so far this year.
The Perth Mint, one of the world’s leading producers of newly mined gold, is witnessing a similar surge.
Visitors to our “East Perth premises have increased from an average of 5,000 a week to about 8,750 over the past four weeks. This has prompted us to recruit an additional eight staff to assist across our retail and customer operations teams”, said Tina Kircher, general manager of retail.
World Gold Council data showed investment demand for gold bars rose 10% in 2024, while coin buying fell 32%.
With investors seeking security and liquidity, physical gold could remain a key part of retail portfolios in the months ahead.
“The world remains deeply unsettled, and gold is reflecting that,” said Adrian Ash, head of research at online marketplace BullionVault.
(By Ashitha Shivaprasad and Polina Devitt; Editing by Veronica Brown and Arun Koyyur)
M23 rebels reject accusations of gold theft from eastern Congo mine
M23 troops. Credit: Al Jazeera English, Wikimedia Commons, under licence CC BY-SA 2.0.The M23 armed group on Thursday denied accusations that its fighters had looted at least 500 kilograms of bullion from Twangiza Mining’s gold concession in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
The firm operating in South Kivu province, much of which is under M23’s control, said this week that M23 had “secretly transported (the gold) through underground channels.”
It also accused the rebels of using Rwandan technicians to extract geological data to resume and expand mining.
Rwanda has consistently denied backing M23 rebels, despite repeated allegations from UN experts and Western and regional governments.
At a press conference on Thursday, Corneille Nangaa, leader of a rebel alliance that includes M23, said the mine was not in operation and that only artisanal miners were working there.
He said M23 did not have the necessary equipment to operate a mine.
Nangaa has also accused Congolese government forces of attacking the site including with aerial bombing. He said civilians had been killed in those attacks but did not provide a death toll.
A drone strike on October 15 destroyed power generation infrastructure at the mine, the company said. It is not clear who was responsible for the drone strike.
Congo’s government did not respond to a request for comment on the allegation.
M23 staged a lightning offensive this year that allowed them to seize more territory in eastern Congo than ever before. The group seized the mine in May.
Twangiza said it had lost over 100 kg of gold a month since the takeover, in addition to $5 million worth of equipment and materials.
The company is preparing to file a formal complaint with international arbitration and Congolese authorities, and has declared force majeure.
Armed groups have seized several mining sites in mineral-rich eastern Congo, according to UN investigators.
A UN Security Council briefing last year said M23 rebels were earning around $300,000 monthly from mineral taxes in the coltan-rich Rubaya region.
(Reporting by Congo newsroom; Writing by Anait Miridzhanian; Editing by Robbie Corey-Boulet and Daniel Wallis)
The M23 armed group on Thursday denied accusations that its fighters had looted at least 500 kilograms of bullion from Twangiza Mining’s gold concession in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
The firm operating in South Kivu province, much of which is under M23’s control, said this week that M23 had “secretly transported (the gold) through underground channels.”
It also accused the rebels of using Rwandan technicians to extract geological data to resume and expand mining.
Rwanda has consistently denied backing M23 rebels, despite repeated allegations from UN experts and Western and regional governments.
At a press conference on Thursday, Corneille Nangaa, leader of a rebel alliance that includes M23, said the mine was not in operation and that only artisanal miners were working there.
He said M23 did not have the necessary equipment to operate a mine.
Nangaa has also accused Congolese government forces of attacking the site including with aerial bombing. He said civilians had been killed in those attacks but did not provide a death toll.
A drone strike on October 15 destroyed power generation infrastructure at the mine, the company said. It is not clear who was responsible for the drone strike.
Congo’s government did not respond to a request for comment on the allegation.
M23 staged a lightning offensive this year that allowed them to seize more territory in eastern Congo than ever before. The group seized the mine in May.
Twangiza said it had lost over 100 kg of gold a month since the takeover, in addition to $5 million worth of equipment and materials.
The company is preparing to file a formal complaint with international arbitration and Congolese authorities, and has declared force majeure.
Armed groups have seized several mining sites in mineral-rich eastern Congo, according to UN investigators.
A UN Security Council briefing last year said M23 rebels were earning around $300,000 monthly from mineral taxes in the coltan-rich Rubaya region.
(Reporting by Congo newsroom; Writing by Anait Miridzhanian; Editing by Robbie Corey-Boulet and Daniel Wallis)
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