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Avery Goodman: China’s new physical gold mandate for insurers will reshape the gold market |
China has launched an initiative that is likely to fundamentally alter the global gold market.
Its insurance regulator issued a regulatory directive requiring certain insurance companies to allocate a fixed minimum portion of their huge assets to physical gold. This is unprecedented.
It doesn’t quite take us all the way back to the gold standard at the turn of the 20th century, but it pushes in that direction.
In short, via regulation, China, the second-largest economy, has now created structural demand for gold that will support rising prices and its de-dollarization strategy.
In February 2025 China began a pilot program that allowed selected insurance companies to invest in physical gold. It was a first-time event. It had never been allowed before. The initiative involves 10 major insurers, including PICC Property & Casualty and China Life Insurance. It allows them to allocate up to 1% of their total assets to gold bullion. …