In every civilization, from the pharaohs of ancient Egypt to the medieval empires, gold has served as more than a metal: it's been a vessel of trust, memory and permanence. Fastforward to 2025, and gold's price per troy ounce has shattered expectations, surging roughly 34%–38%, year-to-date, to an all-time high north of $3,500, with intraday peaks around $3,526–$3,527.1 The bedrock of this rally is central bank demand. In Q2 2025 alone, official global reserves swelled by approximately 166 tonnes. If anything, this strong interest merely echoes central banks' record purchases in recent years, including well over ... (full story)