Bullion holdings in loco London rise.

Sun July 12 2026

Last week, the LBMA reported bullion vault holdings in loco London at 9,464.3t as of the 30th of June, up 72.4t from end-May. Separately, the Bank of England reported bullion vault holdings at 5,590.1t, up 98.5t, implying private bullion vault holdings fell 26.1t, to 3,874.2t. Based on its end-June price (USD 4,007/oz) gold vaulted in loco London was valued at USD 1,219.3bn.

…as gold flows back into the Bank of England…

Bullion vaulted in London has now rebounded 991.9t from its January 2025 low, but while the initial rebound was driven by private vault holdings, more recently it has been dominated by holdings at the Bank of England. The shift in vault holdings between the private sector and Bank of England reflects cooling investor demand for gold, reflected in a decline in gold-backed ETF holdings – much of which is vaulted in London – and a resurgence in gold that had previously been leased out, flowing back in the Bank of England’s vault. Since its low in April 2025, vault holdings at the Bank of England have rebounded 604.6t.

…on subdued investor demand…

The flow of gold back into the Bank of England’s vault is consistent with the fall in the gold lease rate back to slightly negative territory, meaning it’s not worth the while of Central Banks to lease it out, and is indicative of subdued investor interest in the metal. I anticipate that at the end of this month the World Gold Council’s Gold Demand Trends (Q2) will show a significant decline in demand for gold from investors, both in the form of physical bar and coin and gold-backed ETF (bar) holdings.

…driven by tighter US monetary conditions.

As gold largely behaves as a financial asset, its price is going to be determined largely by its currency of denomination (USD index), alternative long maturity real assets (long-term inflation linked bond real yields), asset market volatility, and economic/policy uncertainty. During periods of US dollar strength/higher real bond yields and lower asset market volatility – as we’ve been experiencing – gold tends to come under pressure and we see a flow of gold holdings from shorter-term buyers (typically investors in physical bar and coin, gold-backed ETFs and exchange holdings) to longer-term buyers (typically gold jewelers fabricators, commercial and industrial users, and Central Banks) and this is the direction of flow I expect we will see in Gold Demand Trends (Q2).

It’s a bit trickier for silver

The LBMA reports silver bullion held in loco London amounted to 902.84 mil. troy ounces (28,082t), an increase of 15.12Moz (470.2t). Total silver bullion vault holdings have recently declined, but it’s entirely due to a decline in holdings in COMEX approved vaults.

Below, I give my interpretation of recent market developments and my current view on gold and silver.

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