Imported gold was worth a total US$375 billion in 2020 and ranks among the world’s top 10 most valuable imported goods. The value of globally imported gold increased 26.7% over the 5-year period from 2016 to 2020.

Worldwide, the dollar amount spent on gold imports accelerated by 12.3% year over year since 2019.

As a precious metal, gold is considered a speciality product for consumers. Gold is used in making jewelry, electrical devices including computers, as a component in restorative dentistry, and as a coloring agent in glass.

The 5 most lucrative global consumer markets for importing gold account for just over two-thirds (68.8%) of the overall international spending on bullion imported during 2020. The highest cashflows are generated by buyers in: United Kingdom (23.5%), Switzerland (23.4%), United State (9.2%), Turkey (6.7%) and India (5.8%).

Among these 5 leading markets, the lone year-over-year decrease was the -29.7% drop from importers in India.

The following analysis focuses on other metrics measuring consumer demand in the top 100 global markets for gold.

By comparing changes in consumer demand for imported gold by country, we can uncover the most attractive opportunities for selling gold and related products and services on international markets.

Gold Is A Consumer Speciality Product

Gold satisfies the criteria of a consumer good (also called an end product) created by businesses for consumers to buy in its final form. In contrast, products like turbojets are usually purchased by companies or government entities rather than individuals.

Economists classify gold as a speciality product, a technical classification for goods that are not as easily accessible as shopping products purchased from a local convenience stores or grocery shops.

Gold is also defined as a speciality product because it is durable since it can be stored for much longer than 3 years; typically requires more time before the consumer makes a buying decision; and is not bought as often as less expensive items such as food or beverages.

Most financial institutions sell physical gold bullion and coins to their customers, and charge fees for storing valuables like gold in on-site safety deposit boxes.

Just 0.05% of the metrics for imported gold reported in this article was specifically for monetary gold. In other words, virtually all gold imports in our statistics is non-monetary gold.

Imported Gold Bought by Country

The pre-sorted list below showcases marketing intelligence for the top 100 buyers of gold, ranked in descending order starting with the greatest annual sales amount at the 4-digit Harmonized System (HS) code level. For gold, the HS code is 7108.

Also shown is each country’s percentage change in imports of gold from 2019 to 2020.

United Kingdom: US$88,251,083,000 (up 24.7% from 2019)
Switzerland: $87,921,350,000 (up 44.9%)
United States: $34,686,628,000 (up 258.1%)
Turkey: $25,183,792,000 (up 123.5%)
India: $21,922,212,000 (down -29.7%)
Hong Kong: $18,877,648,000 (up 35.2%)
Singapore: $16,636,743,000 (up 64.8%)
China: $11,416,975,000 (down -74%)
United Arab Emirates: $10,050,341,000 (down -68.7%)
Italy: $9,712,628,000 (up 86.4%)
Canada: $8,709,007,000 (up 52.8%)
Germany: $8,229,281,000 (up 86.3%)
Australia: $6,342,068,000 (up 34.7%)
Thailand: $5,050,804,000 (down -28.1%)
Austria: $2,474,738,000 (up 193.1%)
Malaysia: $2,252,897,000 (down -6.4%)
Taiwan: $1,978,985,000 (up 58.2%)
Indonesia: $1,901,743,000 (up 7.5%)
Uganda: $1,841,915,000 (up 39.8%)
France: $1,232,869,000 (up 13.5%)
Saudi Arabia: $1,167,507,000 (down -49.9%)
Belarus: $1,160,208,000 (up no data)
Cambodia: $1,045,102,000 (up 1028%)
South Korea: $905,994,000 (up 2.5%)
Belgium: $768,822,000 (down -16.2%)
Free Zones: $544,271,000 (up 81.2%)
South Africa: $443,031,000 (up 34.8%)
Netherlands: $414,739,000 (up 187.2%)
Kazakhstan: $333,932,000 (up 20.8%)
Czech Republic: $326,325,000 (up 61%)
Japan: $269,163,000 (up 117%)
Spain: $266,054,000 (up 7.1%)
Qatar: $224,635,000 (down -35.7%)
Poland: $191,947,000 (up 46.2%)
Vietnam: $181,789,000 (up 12.4%)
Lebanon: $156,595,000 (down -67.6%)
Egypt: $135,975,000 (up 24%)
Estonia: $127,418,000 (up 104.6%)
New Zealand: $126,258,000 (up 199%)
Slovenia: $110,281,000 (up 244.3%)
Luxembourg: $101,021,000 (up 37.9%)
Slovakia: $96,656,000 (down -9.4%)
Ukraine: $90,113,000 (up 316%)
Philippines: $88,161,000 (down -15.3%)
Mexico: $81,215,000 (down -35.5%)
Sweden: $77,736,000 (up 74.4%)
Jordan: $75,384,000 (down -12.6%)
Finland: $71,681,000 (up 185.9%)
Dominican Republic: $66,088,000 (down -26.4%)
Portugal: $59,185,000 (up 30%)
Cayman Islands: $59,068,000 (down -65.8%)
Hungary: $56,000,000 (up 56.5%)
Ireland: $44,272,000 (down -43.3%)
Croatia: $35,637,000 (up 74.5%)
Serbia: $33,951,000 (up 300.2%)
Tunisia: $30,512,000 (up 53.6%)
Kuwait: $27,741,000 (down -92.5%)
Nepal: $27,579,000 (down -88.2%)
Bangladesh: $26,942,000 (down -96.9%)
Uzbekistan: $25,287,000 (up no data)
Bulgaria: $24,629,000 (up 94.5%)
Armenia: $24,225,000 (down -79.6%)
Russia: $23,919,000 (up 51.3%)
Peru: $22,691,000 (up 1246%)
Denmark: $19,810,000 (up 41.6%)
Israel: $16,468,000 (up 6.9%)
Macao: $11,807,000 (up 22.1%)
Lithuania: $11,611,000 (up 87.4%)
Algeria: $11,448,000 (up 817.3%)
Mauritius: $9,974,000 (down -39.5%)
Bahrain: $8,911,000 (down -95.9%)
Laos: $8,759,000 (up 100.5%)
Oman: $8,054,000 (down -99%)
Norway: $7,200,000 (up 20.9%)
Pakistan: $6,756,000 (down -53.9%)
Greece: $6,222,000 (down -33.5%)
Cyprus: $4,562,000 (up 130.3%)
Malta: $4,473,000 (up 0.9%)
Brazil: $4,128,000 (down -61%)
Andorra: $3,789,000 (up 53.3%)
Sri Lanka: $1,788,000 (down -99.7%)
Eswatini: $1,246,000 (up 124500%)
Costa Rica: $1,012,000 (down -6.7%)
Guatemala: $975,000 (down -49.9%)
Bosnia/Herzegovina: $953,000 (up 6707%)
Libya: $743,000 (down -68%)
Iceland: $665,000 (down -27.5%)
Namibia: $607,000 (up 30250%)
Trinidad/Tobago: $517,000 (down -75.8%)
Guinea: $513,000 (down -98.6%)
Bhutan: $499,000 (up 148.3%)
Senegal: $408,000 (down -72.5%)
Bolivia: $320,000 (down -37.1%)
Kyrgyzstan: $287,000 (up 5.9%)
Seychelles: $246,000 (up 12200%)
Panama: $224,000 (down -91.1%)
Iran: $224,000 (down -99.8%)
Gibraltar: $208,000 (up 890.5%)
French Polynesia: $113,000 (down -65.4%)
Ecuador: $88,000 (up 214.3%)

Among the above 100 global markets, 60 countries increased their purchases of imported gold. The 5 strongest gains year over year were posted by Eswatini (up 124,500%), Namibia (up 30,250%), Seychelles (up 12,200%), Bosnia and Herzegovina (up 6,707%) and Peru (up 1,246%).

Leading the decliners year over year were Iran (down -99.8%) and Sri Lanka (down -99.7%). Significant declines for gold imports were also experienced in Oman (down -99%), Guinea (down -98.6%), Bangladesh (down -96.9%), Bahrain (down -95.9%), Kuwait (down -92.5%) and Panama (down -91.1%).

Richest Global Markets for Imported Gold

Highlighted below is the market demand for gold imported during 2020 by 30 of world’s richest countries in terms of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per person, according to RichestCountryReports.com.

Countries are listed in descending order starting with the wealthiest economy in terms of GDP per capita.

Luxembourg: $101 million (Up 37.9%)
Singapore: $16.6 billion (Up 64.8%)
Ireland: $44.3 million (Down -43.3%)
Qatar: $224.6 million (Down -35.7%)
Macao: $11.8 million (Up 22.1%)
Switzerland: $87.9 billion (Up 44.9%)
Norway: $7.2 million (Up 20.9%)
United States: $34.7 billion (Up 258.1%)
Brunei Darussalam: nil (not applicable)
Hong Kong: $18.9 billion (Up 35.2%)
Denmark: $19.8 million (Up 41.6%)
Netherlands: $414.7 million (Up 187.2%)
United Arab Emirates: $10.1 billion (Down -68.7%)
Taiwan: $2 billion (Up 58.2%)
Iceland: $665,000 (Down -27.5%)
Austria: $2.5 billion (Up 193.1%)
Germany: $8.2 billion (Up 86.3%)
Sweden: $77.7 million (Up 74.4%)
Australia: $6.3 billion (Up 34.7%)
Belgium: $768.8 million (Down -16.2%)
Finland: $71.7 million (Up 185.9%)
Canada: $8.7 billion (Up 52.8%)
Bahrain: $8.9 million (Down -95.9%)
France: $1.23 billion (Up 13.5%)
Saudi Arabia: $1.17 billion (Down -49.92%)
United Kingdom: $88.3 billion (Up 24.7%)
South Korea: $906 million (Up 2.5%)
Malta: $4.5 million (Up 0.9%)
Japan: $269.2 million (Up 117%)
New Zealand: $126.3 million (Up 199%)

Twenty-two among the above richest economies spent more on imported gold in 2020 compared to 2019. The top gainers were United States (up 258.1%), New Zealand (up 199%), Austria (up 193.1%), Netherlands (up 187.2%), Finland (up 185.9%) and Japan (up 117%).

Registering the greatest declines were Bahrain (down -95.9%), United Arab Emirates (down -68.7%), Saudi Arabia (down -49.9%), Ireland (down -43.3%) and Qatar (down -35.7%).

Top 10 US Imported Gold Suppliers

In 2020, the United States of America served as the world’s third-biggest market for imported gold as measured by total sales. America’s top 3 suppliers (Switzerland, Canada, Mexico) accounted for 62.9% of US imports of gold.

The following countries benefited the most from selling imported gold into the US in 2020.

Switzerland: US$15.4 billion (44.3% of US total)
Canada: $3.4 billion (9.9%)
Mexico: $3 billion (8.7%)
Singapore: $2.9 billion (8.2%)
Australia: $2.7 billion (7.9%)
Hong Kong: $1.6 billion (4.6%)
South Africa: $1.5 billion (4.2%)
Colombia: $1.4 billion (4%)
Nicaragua: $571.9 million (1.6%)
United Kingdom: $424.2 million (1.2%)

All 10 among America’s major suppliers of gold increased their sales to the US from 2019 to 2020, with gain ranging from 2.2% for Mexican gold exporters to the massive 4,882,118% increase garnered by Hong Kong.

Gold Imported by Key American States

The following 8 US states imported 95.5% worth of America’s total gold purchases from international suppliers in 2020.

New York: US$25.3 billion (73.1% of US total)
Utah: $3.1 billion (8.9%)
Florida: $2 billion (5.9%)
Illinois: $1.2 billion (3.5%)
Massachusetts: $675.5 million (1.9%)
Ohio: $470.9 million (1.4%)
Connecticut: $291.6 million (0.8%)
Rhode Island: $36.3 million (0.1%)

The greatest percentage increases in imports of gold from 2019 to 2020 were posted by Ohio (up 523,078%), New York state (up 613.1%), Illinois (up 380.8%) and Florida (up 115.7%).

The -17.2% setback incurred by Utah represents the sole year-over-year decline.

More Market Metrics for US Gold Imports

Shifting the focus to product quantity instead of dollar value, the United States imported an estimated 93 tons of gold in 2020. The latest annual tonnage for gold imported into America represents a 416.7% increase from the 18 tons of imported gold bought in 2019 from international suppliers.

To give some perspective to the above numbers, China imported 213 tons of gold, down -78.5% from 991 tons in 2019.

Switzerland imported 2,162 tons of gold in 2020, up 3.3% from 2,092 tons one year earlier.

The average unit value that American importers paid for foreign-made gold in 2020 was $373 million per ton (down -30.7% from 2019).

In contrast, buyers in China paid a lower average unit price of $53.6 million per ton of imported gold (up 20.9% from 2019).

Importers in Switzerland spent an average $40.7 million per ton on imported gold in 2020 (up 40.2% from one year earlier).

World’s Biggest Gold Miners

The following metrics are specific to the largest gold miners in terms of company revenues for 2019.

However, please note that the revenues shown are overall company sales that encompass more than gold operations.

For example, South Africa’s Sibanye Stillwater is a multinational precious metals mining company that leads the world in producing platinum. In addition, Sibanye Stillwater is a strong competitor in producing palladium.

Similarly, Toronto-based Kinross Gold is also a significant miner of silver.

The listed 2019 revenue amounts include both domestic and international production.

Newmont Corporation (Greenwood Village, US): $9.74 billion
Barrick Gold (Toronto, Canada): $9.72 billion
Sibanye Stillwater (Johannesburg, South Africa): $4.5 billion
Polyus PJSC (Moscow, Russia): $4 billion
Newcrest Mining (Melbourne, Australia): $3.7 billion
AngloGold Ashanti Ltd (Johannesburg, South Africa): $3.5 billion
Kinross Gold (Toronto, Canada): $3.3 billion
Agnico Eagle Mines Ltd (Toronto, Canada): $2.9 billion
Gold Fields Ltd (Johannesburg, South Africa): $2.6 billion
Franco-Nevada Corp (Toronto, Canada): $844 million

Shown within brackets is the city which serves as the global headquarters for each global miner.

Note that 5 of the world’s 10 largest precious metal miners are in North America, with 3 competitors in South Africa.

References

Independent insights and analysis presented in this article are based on researched facts and statistics sourced from the following educational portals.

BoyceWire, Consumer Goods Definition.

Forbes, The Forbes Global 2000 List

Insider Monkey, Top 10 Gold Mining Companies In The World.

International Trade Centre, Trade Map.

Investopedia, Consumer Goods, Consumer Staples Definition, Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG).

Richest Country Reports, Top 50 Richest Countries by GDP per Capita.

United States Census Bureau, Foreign Trade State Data.

Wikipedia, Gold.

World’s Top Exports, Gold Exports by Country.