Record-breaking Gold Investment: China Spends $1 Billion on Gold Imports Amidst U.S. Tariffs as Per Recent Reports
In a move to secure its foreign exchange reserves and hedge against potential economic uncertainties, China's central bank, the People's Bank of China (PBoC), has continued a steady gold-buying spree. The bank added gold reserves for nine consecutive months through July 2025, increasing its official gold holdings by about 2 tonnes in July alone [3].
This strategic move comes amid growing geopolitical and trade tensions, including US tariffs and trade barriers affecting precious metals and other commodities. The official data reports that China's gold reserves now stand at approximately 2,300 tonnes, accounting for about 6.8% of its total foreign exchange reserves [3].
However, there is significant uncertainty about the true scale of China’s gold reserves. Independent analyses estimate the central bank’s actual gold holdings could be more than double the official figure—possibly exceeding 5,000 tonnes—due to covert buying off the books [2].
The moderation in Chinese gold imports in the first half of 2025—down approximately 62% year-on-year—also reflects weakened domestic wholesale demand. Yet, this does not appear to have deterred the PBoC’s ongoing strategic accumulation efforts [3]. Analysts view the central bank’s measured purchases as a deliberate approach to avoid disrupting global gold markets while continuing to build reserves [1][4].
The PBoC's gold buying is not an isolated event. Global central banks collectively purchased 166 tonnes of gold in Q2 2025—a 41% increase over the usual quarterly average [4][5]. This behavior underscores a bullish long-term outlook for gold driven by structural trends such as trade tensions, deglobalization, policy easing, and geopolitical instability.
The PBoC's gold purchases are seen as a key driver of gold's price support and a strategic move amid evolving monetary orders [4]. As of now, gold is trading for $3,453 per ounce, up nearly 30% year-to-date [6].
Meanwhile, in other news, the US government has imposed 39% import tariffs on gold bullion imports from Switzerland [5]. This move could potentially result in the US paying about $24 billion worth of import taxes on the same amount [5].
In the digital currency realm, Coinbase's CEO, Brian Armstrong, addressed the UK ban of Coinbase commercial, stating it as a statement about the financial system not working for many [7]. Elsewhere, dYdX Foundation raised $8 million to accelerate ecosystem growth [8].
On the Bitcoin front, an on-chain analyst predicts that Bitcoin is on the cusp of entering the euphoria phase, with the bull market expanding. However, a warning has been issued about a potential Bitcoin meltdown due to a black swan risk [9].
In terms of traditional markets, Remittix has announced the beta launch date of its web3 wallet and has raised over $18.7 million [10]. FLOKI's Valhalla MMORPG is launching a 60-day national commercial blitz on US television [11].
Lastly, the US imported $61.5 billion worth of gold from Switzerland from June 2024 to June 2025 [12]. As a result, China's gold reserves grew to $243.99 billion at the end of July [13]. The PBoC purchased $1.06 billion worth of gold in July, extending its streak of gold purchases to nine months [13].
- The People's Bank of China (PBoC) continues to invest in cryptocurrency through gold purchases, hinting at growing interest in digital assets within the financial industry.
- The aggressive gold-buying spree by the PBoC, especially in altcoins like gold, signifies a wider strategy to diversify China's personal-finance portfolio and hedge against economic uncertainties.
- As policy-and-legislation surrounding cryptocurrency remains fluid globally, the PBoC's gold investments may reflect a cautious approach in the face of politics and general-news-related market volatility.
- With the recent increase in gold reserves, the PBoC's moves in the finance sector could potentially influence the demand for blockchain-based digital currencies, impacting the overall business landscape.
- The extensive gold purchases by global central banks, including the PBoC, demonstrate a collective bullish outlook on blockchain technology and its application in traditional finance and personal-finance strategies.
