South Korea's central bank will purchase 1 ton of gold in December.

According to a report by South Korean media outlet MoneyToday, based on a report submitted by the Bank of Korea to a ruling party lawmaker, the Bank of Korea will purchase about 1 ton of domestically produced gold in December, worth 200 billion won. This is the bank's first physical gold purchase in 13 years. After establishing the necessary system for a domestic gold trading desk, the Bank of Korea will conduct its first transaction on December 14. In the second quarter of this year, the Bank of Korea had already begun indirect gold investment by purchasing $250 million worth of gold ETFs. The gold purchased by the Bank of Korea this time may be gold that domestic producers had originally planned to export, which allows the central bank to pay in won without using foreign exchange. As of the end of August, the central bank held 104.4 tons of physical gold, valued at $14.88 billion at market prices, accounting for 3.4% of its foreign exchange reserves.