# Central Banks Bought 289 Tons of Gold in Q2 as Dollar Reserve Share Slipped

By Enna Lee

Canonical URL: https://www.tokenpost.com/news/investing/34253
Published: 2026-10-18T04:14:05.000Z
Updated: 2026-10-18T04:14:05.000Z
Section: Investing

> Central banks made estimated net gold purchases of 289 metric tons in Q2 2026 and 345 tons in the first half, the lowest first-half total since 2022.

The dollar still accounted for 56.70% of official foreign-exchange reserves in the second quarter, while estimated central-bank gold purchases rose. Those figures do not show that the Iran conflict is changing oil-linked demand for dollars.

The dollar’s reserve share fell from 57.18% in the first quarter. Dollar claims were largely unchanged. An earlier estimate put the Q1 share at 57.13%, up from 56.42% in Q4 2025; the Q1 figure was subsequently revised to 57.18%. Reserve figures track currency holdings, not the currencies used to invoice or settle oil sales.

Estimated net central-bank gold purchases were 289 metric tons in Q2, following a revised estimate of 57 tons in Q1. Estimated net purchases for the first half totaled 345 tons, the lowest first-half total since 2022. The figures show gold buying, but do not establish that oil exporters are moving away from dollar assets.

U.S. forces began Operation Epic Fury on Feb. 28. Its estimated cost reached $33.4 billion by June 29, including $7.4 billion in cumulative obligations, $22.3 billion in expended munitions and $3.7 billion in equipment losses. The estimate excludes infrastructure repairs. Strategic inventory shortfalls and bottlenecks in munitions resupply were also recorded, but the figures do not connect those pressures to a change in oil settlement or reserve holdings.

The 10-year Treasury yield rose from 3.97% on Feb. 27 to 5.26% on Sept. 29, then eased to 5.10% on Oct. 15. Higher market rates affect federal interest costs as debt matures and is refinanced; they do not immediately reset the cost of all outstanding debt. The yield change alone does not establish a shift in oil-related demand for Treasuries.

The fiscal 2026 federal deficit was estimated at $2 trillion, up $218 billion from fiscal 2025. The term “petrodollar” refers to the dollar’s role in oil trade and the recycling of oil revenue into dollar assets. A 1974 U.S.-Saudi economic commission included cooperation involving petrodollar recycling, but that history does not establish an exclusive dollar-only oil-sale agreement.