China imported more than 1,000 tonnes of gold in the first eight months of 2026, spending a record $158.8 billion, according to figures cited by Coin Bureau from Chinese customs data and the Financial Times.

The total is 65% above the $96.5 billion China paid for 886 tonnes of gold across all of 2025. The pace of purchases underscores the strength of Chinese demand for the precious metal this year, although the customs data cover gold imports broadly and do not by themselves indicate how much was bought by the central bank. Reading the import tallies alongside official reserve announcements therefore helps build a fuller picture of where the country's gold position actually stands.

Record Import Volumes Amid Broad-Based Demand

Customs figures cited by Coin Bureau show China passed the 1,000-tonne import mark in just eight months, with total outlays reaching $158.8 billion. According to the Financial Times, the surge reflects demand from both official-sector and private-sector buyers. Factors cited behind the growing interest in gold include weakness in China's property market, subdued domestic investment opportunities and demand for assets regarded as stores of value.

The import wave has coincided with continued adjustments to the composition of China's foreign reserves. Figures cited in the same X post show the country's holdings of U.S. Treasury securities dropped to $618 billion in July, their lowest level since August 2008. The Financial Times, which separately reported the same July figure, characterized the decline as part of a broader diversification of China's reserve assets.

Central Bank Gold Buying Accelerates

China's central bank added 20 tonnes of gold in August, its largest monthly addition since 2023, according to the Coin Bureau post. The reported purchase followed a Goldman Sachs estimate that China bought 35 tonnes in July rather than the 20 tonnes officially disclosed — a gap that underscores the difficulty of gauging official gold accumulation when purchases may not be fully reflected in reported figures.

Goldman Sachs has identified central-bank demand as an important structural factor in the gold market. Research the bank published in August said central banks are continuing to diversify reserves through gold and projected average official purchases of 50 tonnes per month in 2026. The firm also said its estimates indicated China was the largest identifiable central-bank buyer in June.

U.S. Treasury Holdings Continue to Decline

The slide in China's Treasury holdings adds another dimension to the reserve-allocation picture. The $618 billion recorded for July compares with a peak of more than $1.3 trillion in 2013, according to the Financial Times. The reduction does not establish that Treasury sales are being directly redirected into gold, and the two trends should not automatically be treated as a single transaction strategy. Still, both developments are taking place as China holds a larger amount of gold and a smaller stock of U.S. government debt than in previous years.

For now, August's officially reported 20-tonne purchase and Goldman Sachs' 35-tonne July estimate stand as the key reference points for assessing China's reported accumulation, while the country's gold imports have already exceeded the total volume recorded for all of 2025. The next monthly customs prints and reserve disclosures will show whether that pace was sustained through the rest of the year.

Source Hokanews