In this article, we will look at 30 countries that have the largest gold reserves. If you want to skip our detailed analysis, head straight to 10 Countries that Have the Largest Gold Reserves.
Gold Hits Record High
Gold hit a record high after the precious metal scaled to $2,100 per ounce on March 5. The “safe-haven” asset further escalated to $2,141.59 per ounce, surpassing the previous record of $2,135 in December 2023. The rally sky-rocketed following rising bets for the US Fed expected to cut interest rates in June 2024 and on safe-haven demand due to escalation in the Middle East conflict. With increasing speculations of rate cuts, Fed Chair Jerome Powell reiterated that the interest rates will start to come down this year, but he is not ready yet to predict the exact timing. On March 6, during congressionally mandated appearances on Capitol Hill, Powell said policymakers remain attentive to the risks that inflation poses and do not want to ease up too quickly. He further added:
“In considering any adjustments to the target range for the policy rate, we will carefully assess the incoming data, the evolving outlook, and the balance of risks. The Committee does not expect that it will be appropriate to reduce the target range until it has gained greater confidence that inflation is moving sustainably toward 2 percent.”
Gold has recorded a surge in its price for being a safe-haven asset. The precious metal is primarily used as the most reliable investment in securing assets during political and financial uncertainty. The price of gold has increased by over $300 per ounce since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war. Some analysts believe that the gold price could surge past the $2,300 mark. On March 5, The Guardian reported that a senior analyst at ActivTrades, Ricardo Evangelista, said that the increasing concerns regarding the global economic outlook, geopolitical tensions, and changing expectations towards interest rate cuts have sparked the demand for gold, leading to an increase in its price. The chief investment officer at Charles Stanley, Patrick Farrell, pointed out that gold prices would probably soon peak. Here is what Farrell said:
“It has been a grim year for many commodities. A confluence of weakening economic growth, particularly from China, plus an adjustment after some post-pandemic exuberance, has seen the prices for energy, industrial metals, and ‘energy transition’ commodities such as copper and nickel drop.”
Unlike fiat currencies, gold retains its value against all the odds in the market including inflation and other market tensions. Gold’s nature against inflationary pressures makes it the best hedge against inflation, especially in countries that have the largest gold reserves. The World Gold Council’s gold demand trends from the third quarter of 2023 showed the central bank’s historic pace of buying the precious metal. The gold demand was 8% ahead of its five-year average at 1,147 tonnes in Q3 2023, excluding OTC. The total demand for gold was up by 6% year-over-year at 1,267 tonnes including OTC and stock flows. The net central bank buying was reported around 337 tonnes, which was the third strongest quarter in the World Gold Council’s data series. However, the net central bank buying failed to reach the staggering 459 tonnes figure from Q3 2022. Still, the demand for gold buying from central banks year-to-date is 14% ahead of the same period in 2022, at a record 800 tonnes. In addition, the Q3 2023 investment demand was 157 tonnes, almost 56% higher year-over-year.
Major Players in the Gold Mining Sector
Newmont Corporation (NYSE:NEM), Endeavour Mining PLC (TSE:EDV), and Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE:GOLD) are some of the largest gold mining companies in the world.
Newmont Corporation (NYSE:NEM) is one of the leading gold mining firms based out of the US. The company operates the Nevada Gold Mines, the world’s biggest gold mining project, in collaboration with Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE:GOLD). On February 22, Newmont Corporation (NYSE:NEM) announced its earnings for the fourth quarter of 2023. The company posted earnings per share of $0.50, beating the consensus estimates by $0.06. The revenue was reported at $3.96 billion, surpassing estimates by $613.30 million. Here are some of the comments from Newmont Corporation’s (NYSE:NEM) Q4 2023 earnings call:
“Newmont finished the year with a solid fourth quarter, putting us in line with the revised stand-alone outlook that we issued following the resolution of the strike at Peñasquito. In summary, we produced 5.5 million ounces of gold at all-in sustaining costs of $1,444 an ounce. In addition to gold, we produced nearly 900,000 gold equivalent ounces from copper, silver, lead, and zinc over the course of the year. This performance enabled us to deliver $4.2 billion in adjusted EBITDA returned the $1.4 million to shareholders and end the year with liquidity above $6 billion.”
Endeavour Mining PLC (TSE:EDV) is a London-based multinational gold mining firm. On February 27, the company announced that it has initiated wet commissioning activities at the Sabodala-Massawa Expansion project in Senegal. The construction at the Sabodala-Massawa Expansion project is 91% complete and Endeavour Mining PLC (TSE:EDV) expects the first gold pour in May 2024. Endeavour Mining PLC (TSE:EDV) projects production of up to 400 koz at Sabodala-Massawa in 2024. The company expects this project to become a true top-tier asset.
Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE:GOLD) is aiming to be the most valuable gold mining company in the world. Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE:GOLD) expects an average annual production of approximately 6.5 million ounces of gold equivalent through 2032. On February 14, the company announced its earnings for the fourth quarter of 2023. Barrick Gold Corporation (NYSE:GOLD) posted earnings per share of $0.27, surpassing consensus estimates by $0.06. The company reported revenue of $3.06 billion, an increase of 10.27% year-over-year. Here are some of the comments of Barrick Gold Corporation’s (NYSE:GOLD) CEO, Mark Bristow, during the Q4 2023 earnings call:
“I want to start this presentation with some reflection back to the time of the merger where we committed to a clear strategy for building the new Barrick into the world’s most valued mining company. And move on now to today, 5 years on, it’s clear that we’ve come a long way in realizing that objective. As I’ll show you through my presentation, our focus on Tier 1 assets has delivered a peerless gold portfolio with meaningful potential for further growth, matched only by the significant ramp-up of our copper business over the next 4 years. Maintaining Barrick’s unique record for replenishing our asset base, we have placed more than — we have replaced more than 140% of our gold reserves since 2019 and more importantly at the same grade, which is critical.”
Now, let’s take a look at the countries that have the largest gold reserves.
Gold Hits Record High: 30 Countries That Have the Largest Gold Reserves
Our Methodology
We gathered the top 30 countries with the largest gold reserves in the world from the World Gold Council database. The countries are ranked in ascending order of their gold reserves in tonnes. The data is updated as of the fourth quarter of 2023.
By the way, Insider Monkey is an investing website that tracks the movements of corporate insiders and hedge funds. By using different consensus approaches, we identify the best stock picks of more than 900 hedge funds investing in US stocks. The top 10 consensus stock picks of hedge funds outperformed the S&P 500 Index by more than 140 percentage points over the last 10 years (see the details here). Whether you are a beginner investor or a professional one looking for the best stocks to buy, you can benefit from the wisdom of hedge funds and corporate insiders.
Gold Hits Record High: 30 Countries That Have the Largest Gold Reserves
30. Brazil
Gold Reserves (in tonnes): 129.65
Brazil has 129.65 tonnes of gold reserves and 2.44% gold holdings. Brazil ranks 30th among the countries that have the largest gold reserves.
29. Iraq
Gold Reserves (in tonnes): 138.44
Iraq has 138.44 tonnes of gold reserves and 7.49% gold holdings.
28. Libya
Gold Reserves (in tonnes): 146.65
Libya is one of the countries with the largest gold reserves in the world. Libya has total gold reserves of 146.65 tonnes and 10.43% gold holdings.
27. Venezuela
Gold Reserves (in tonnes): 161.22
Venezuela has the largest reserves of black gold. The country also has some of the largest gold reserves, recorded at around 161.22 tonnes. Venezuela has a total of 82.96% gold holdings.
26. Philippines
Gold Reserves (in tonnes): 164.77
The Philippines has 164.77 tonnes of gold reserves and 10.09% gold holdings. The Philippines is one of the countries with the largest gold reserves in the world.
25. Algeria
Gold Reserves (in tonnes): 173.56
Algeria has total gold reserves of 173.56 tonnes and 14.26% of gold holdings. Algeria ranks 25th among the countries that have the largest gold reserves.
24. Belgium
Gold Reserves (in tonnes): 227.40
Belgium is one of the leading European countries that has the largest gold reserves. Belgium has total gold reserves of 227.40 tonnes and 37.06% of gold holdings.
23. Singapore
Gold Reserves (in tonnes): 230.02
Singapore has a minimal gold holding of 4.27% while the gold reserves are reported at around 230.02 tonnes.
22. Thailand
Gold Reserves (in tonnes): 244.16
Thailand is another Asian country with large gold reserves, reported at around 244.16 tonnes in Q4 2023. Thailand ranks 22nd among the countries that have the largest gold reserves.
21. Austria
Gold Reserves (in tonnes): 279.99
Austria has total gold reserves of 279.99 tonnes, as of Q4 2023. With 59.67% of gold holdings, Austria is one of the countries that have the largest gold reserves.
20. Spain
Gold Reserves (in tonnes): 281.58
Spain is one of the richest European countries with some of the largest gold reserves in the region. Spain has total gold reserves of 281.58 tonnes and 18.23% gold holdings.
19. Lebanon
Gold Reserves (in tonnes): 286.83
Lebanon’s economy is suffering from political instability and war in the region. However, Lebanon has total gold reserves of 286.83 tonnes and ranks among the countries that have the largest gold reserves.
18. Kazakhstan
Gold Reserves (in tonnes): 294.24
Kazakhstan has total gold reserves of 294.24 tonnes and 54.44% of gold holdings.
17. United Kingdom
Gold Reserves (in tonnes): 310.29
The United Kingdom is one of the largest economies in the world and has 310.29 tonnes of total gold reserves. With 11.64% of gold holdings, the United Kingdom ranks 17th among the countries that have the largest gold reserves.
16. Saudi Arabia
Gold Reserves (in tonnes): 323.07
Saudi Arabia is famous for its oil economy and has some of the largest black gold reverses in the world. However, Saudi Arabia has total gold reserves of 323.07 tonnes and 4.24% of gold holdings.
15. Poland
Gold Reserves (in tonnes): 358.69
Poland is ranked 15th among the countries that have the largest gold reserves. Poland has total gold reserves of 358.69 tonnes and 12.36% of gold holdings.
14. Uzbekistan
Gold Reserves (in tonnes): 371.37
Uzbekistan has total gold reserves of 371.37 tonnes. Uzbekistan has a whopping 71.42% of gold holdings.
13. Portugal
Gold Reserves (in tonnes): 382.63
Portugal has a staggering 72.15% gold holdings and has total gold reserves of 382.63 tonnes.
12. Taiwan
Gold Reserves (in tonnes): 423.63
Taiwan is one of the richest countries in the world. Taiwan has 423.63 tonnes of gold reserves and 4.32% of gold holdings.
11. Türkiye
Gold Reserves (in tonnes): 540.19
Türkiye has 540.19 tonnes of gold reserves and has 100% of gold holdings. Türkiye is one of the countries with the largest gold reserves.
Click here to see 10 Countries that Have the Largest Gold Reserves.
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Disclosure: None. Gold Hits Record High: 30 Countries that Have the Largest Gold Reserves is originally published on Insider Monkey.
