23-Jul (IRD) — The Shanghai Gold Exchange is the only major official physical gold trading market in the world. All trades on the exchange are settled with the exchange of ownership on physical gold bullion. Paper future contracts do not trade on the SGE. In contrast, trading occurs on the LBMA and Comex in paper gold. The Comex is de facto a 99.999% paper gold exchange for which the percentage metal backing the paper traded is minuscule. The LBMA has been rapidly “catching up” to the Comex in this regard, although on a percentage basis the LBMA experiences a higher amount physical gold exchanged than the Comex.
Because of the way in which the SGE functions, gold withdrawn from the SGE measures the true demand for gold in China in a given time period. All gold – except for the gold purchased by the Peoples Bank of China – purchased by any form of end user must pass through the SGE by law. It is for this reason that “withdrawals” represent the most accurate measurement of demand for gold in China – except the Central Bank’s demand.
In the past two weeks, 106.1 tonnes of gold were withdrawn from the SGE. As Smaulgld.com has observed:
Gold withdrawals on the Shanghai Gold Exchange the past two weeks were larger than the amount of gold delivered on COMEX during 2014 and greater than the amount of gold Germany has repatriated from the New York Fed since 2013.
PG View: For a more detailed look at how the SGE differs significantly from other exchanges, be sure to read this excellent piece by Michael J. Kosares: The Shanghai stock crash and China gold demand: What it means for the future of the gold market
