Global gold ETF flow subdued in June at 2.9 tonne

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SME Times News Bureau | 10 Jul, 2021
Flows into global gold ETFs were mostly flat in June, with slight inflows of 2.9 tonne, worth $191 million.

A report by World Gold Council (WGC) said that inflows into North American and Asian funds were primarily offset by outflows from European funds.

"Overall, the positive flows came in spite of significant gold price weakness in the latter half of the month on the heels of a relatively hawkish Federal Reserve (Fed) outlook, suggesting that investors may have taken advantage of the lower price level to gain long gold exposure," it said.

Global Assets Under Management (AUM) stands at 3,624 tonne ($206 billion), approximately 7 per cent shy of the October 2020 record high of 3,909 tonne.

US funds, as well as low-cost gold ETFs in Europe, were the primary source of inflows, while larger European funds, particularly in the UK and Germany, led outflows. North American funds added 10.5 tonne ($646 million) in contrast to European funds, which saw outflows of 9.4 tonne.

Low-cost gold ETFs contributed $222 million (3.8 tonne) to the combined flows seen in North America and Europe.

Asian-listed funds reversed a recent trend to post inflows of 1.7 per cent (2.3 tonne, $136 million) supported by positive flows in India and China, while fund flows in 'Other' regions fell by 0.8 per cent.

After dropping 6 per cent in the second week of June following the Federal Open Market Committee meeting, gold finished the month 7.2 per cent lower at $1,763 per ounce, erasing price gains from May.

Gold daily trading averages fell during June to $163 billion per day compared to $176 billion in May, led by lower COMEX volumes. Trading volume during the month remained in line with the year-to-date average of $165 billion per day, but below the 2020 average of $183 billion.

Net long positioning, via the recent Commitment of Traders report for COMEX gold futures, fell to 522 tonne ($29 billion), near April-end levels and in line with its historical weekly average net long positioning of around 500 tonne ($31 billion).

As gold prices rebounded throughout most of the second quarter, flows into gold ETFs followed suit, led by North American and European funds which added a combined 43.8 tonne over the period.

In Europe, German funds represented nearly half of all European inflows (27.2 tonne), led by Xtrackers IE Physical Gold which gained $1.5 billion. Meanwhile, Amundi Physical Gold ETC in France added $583 million to help French-based funds grow by 20 per cent over the quarter.

In North America, SPDR Gold Shares and SPDR Gold MiniShares led inflows, adding $615 million (1.1 per cent) and $225 million (5.7 per cent) respectively, while Sprott Physical Gold Trust added $124 million (2.8 per cent), and iShares Gold Trust gained $100 million (0.4 per cent).