The World Gold Council recently addressed concerns about potential gold scarcity in its March 2026 article titled “You asked, we answered: Are we running out of gold?”
On Mar. 12, the Council explained that reserves maintain stability over time even as miners extract gold because ongoing exploration converts portions of resources into reserves. Additionally, technological advances are allowing access to deeper, lower-grade, or previously uneconomic deposits.
Furthermore, the organization says that recycling provides a flexible supplement to mined production by drawing on vast above-ground stocks when prices rise, and continued innovation in extraction and exploration ensures long-term availability. Above-ground stocks total 219,891 tonnes, according to the trade association’s data, and these stocks remain available for recycling whenever prices make it economically attractive.
Because gold is virtually indestructible and doesn’t corrode or degrade significantly, almost all gold ever produced stays in existence in forms like jewelry, bullion, coins, industrial components, electronics or central bank reserves. It doesn’t disappear once used.
The World Gold Council firmly concluded that society will not run out of gold supply or mineable gold.
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Investor interest remains strong despite price fluctuations
In March, gold has experienced sharp declines, including drops of over 6 per cent from intraday highs near US$5,423 amid a stronger U.S. dollar, profit-taking and one of its steepest single-session falls in months. Prices have pulled back from early-month peaks to approximately US$5,025 as of Mar. 16.
Nonetheless, the World Gold Council’s March 2026 Gold ETF Flows report, published on Mar. 5, shows that global physically backed gold ETFs attracted US$5.3 billion in inflows during February. This marked the ninth consecutive month of net inflows and helped deliver the strongest two-month start to any year on record.
Holdings rose by 26 tonnes to a historic high of 4,171 tonnes while assets under management reached an unprecedented US$701 billion, supported by higher gold prices.
North American funds led with US$4.7 billion in inflows over nine straight months, a pattern comparable to peaks during the Global Financial Crisis in 2008 and the COVID-19 pandemic. This trend is being driven by geopolitical risks, dollar weakness, lower interest rates, trade uncertainties and equity market concerns. It is prevalent in Asia as well.
Asian ETFs recorded US$2.3 billion in inflows across six consecutive months, fuelled by factors like yen depreciation, regional tensions in Japan, steady demand in China and India and product launches in Hong Kong.
These sustained inflows highlight that investor demand endures because gold serves essential diversification and risk-management purposes.
Further insights from the World Gold Council
The organization has offered additional timely observations in its recent work, notably from the 2025 Central Bank Gold Reserves Survey.
It revealed that 95 per cent of responding institutions (central banks) expected global official gold reserves to increase over the following 12 months. This marked the highest level of optimism in the survey’s history.
This survey also showcased that a record 43 per cent of central banks planned to boost their own holdings, driven by needs to diversify reserves amid geopolitical and economic uncertainty.
The World Gold Council serves as the global authority on gold. This membership-based organization promotes greater understanding and use of the metal through rigorous research, comprehensive data collection and market analysis. It provides insights to investors, policymakers, central banks and industry participants on gold’s role in financial systems, economies, portfolios and supply chains.
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