Poland gold stockpile grows as dollar pressure hits bullion

Poland gold buying accelerated this year as the central bank added 82 tons while bullion prices retreated from April highs.

Governor Adam Glapinski disclosed the purchases at a news conference in Warsaw on Thursday, presenting the move as part of a reserve strategy built around financial security. His figures show the bank added 37 tons after the most recent official data release for April.

Glapinski discloses 82 tons

The additional 37 tons were described as worth about $5 billion at current prices, based on the figures cited at the briefing. The buying came during a weaker stretch for gold, with the source account putting bullion’s decline since April at more than yüzde on.

Glapinski said the central bank had used the price decline to expand its holdings. “We’ve been consistently buying gold, taking advantage of the recent price drops,” he said.

The timing matters because gold usually faces pressure when investors expect higher U.S. interest rates and a firmer dollar. Higher yields can reduce the appeal of a non-interest-bearing asset, while a stronger dollar tends to make bullion more expensive for buyers using other currencies.

Gold target remains 700 tons

Glapinski reaffirmed that the bank is aiming for 700 tons of gold. He said Poland now holds 632.4 tons, leaving the institution within 67.6 tons of that stated level.

The location of the metal is also part of the reserve picture. According to Glapinski, 105 tons are stored in Poland, while the rest is held between London and New York.

Gold’s role in central bank reserves has expanded as governments reassess how to manage financial shocks, currency risk and geopolitical exposure. Glapinski framed the metal as a tool for stability, saying central banks increasingly view it as important for security in their reserve portfolios.

For Poland’s central bank, the purchases deepen a policy choice that separates gold from assets tied to another government’s credit risk. Gold does not pay income, but it is not a liability of a foreign issuer, which is why reserve managers often treat it differently from bonds or deposits.

Rate pressure tests bullion

The near-term tension is clear: Poland is buying into a market that has recently moved against gold. If expectations for higher U.S. rates and a stronger dollar persist, bullion could remain under pressure, making further accumulation less expensive but potentially weighing on the mark-to-market value of existing holdings.

If those rate and dollar pressures ease, the mechanism would run in the opposite direction. Lower expected returns on dollar assets would reduce one headwind for bullion, potentially supporting the value of Poland’s larger gold stockpile and making the 700-ton target more costly to complete.

A third path is steadier but more operational: if prices stabilize around current levels, the central bank can keep building reserves without the same valuation swings. That would give Glapinski more room to present gold accumulation as a gradual balance-sheet decision rather than a response to market stress.

Each scenario carries different implications beyond Poland. Persistent dollar strength would reinforce pressure on emerging-market reserve managers that hold gold or dollar-linked assets; a softer dollar would ease that pressure, while stable prices would keep the focus on long-term reserve composition rather than short-term trading gains.

For the gold market, Poland’s purchases add an official-sector buyer at a time when investor positioning is being shaped by rates and currency expectations. The open questions are how quickly the bank wants to reach 700 tons, whether more metal is moved into domestic storage, and how global rate expectations reshape the cost of the next purchases.