Data from the World Gold Council reveals that gold-backed ETFs recorded net inflows of USD2.7 billion in January, reaching the highest level since May 2021.
The council writes that gold prices strengthened amid a sharp selloff in equity markets before slightly dropping from the hawkish US Fed statement near the end of the month.
North American funds drove the strong start to the year: The majority of US inflows coincided with the gold price rallying by nearly 3 per cent to an intra-month high of USUSD1,847/oz at the beginning of January, in the lead up to gold ETF options expiration.
Adam Perlaky, Senior Analyst, World Gold Council says: “US funds, which are typically more reactive to changes in the gold price than other regions, had a significant impact to begin the year. Though North American funds contributed heavily to gold ETF outflows last year, they registered USD2.7 billion in inflows throughout January. Our data suggests that the reversal can largely be attributed to the gold price rally at the beginning of the month, which saw gold rising by nearly 3 per cent to an intra-month high of USD1,847/oz ahead of the gold ETF options expiration.”
