Precious metals sales broke out across the board: gold, silver and platinum hit a record, and tax-free properties boosted investment fever

On Monday (July 21), the Royal Mint released official sales figures for Quarter 1 for the financial year 2025-2026.

The Mint reported record sales of gold bars online between April and June - not just for gold, but also for silver and platinum.

In a press release, the Mint said: "Gold has set five new all-time highs in sterling, peaking at more than £2,500 in April, driving unprecedented engagement from UK investors, online bullion coin sales (gold, silver and platinum) reached their second-highest level on record, and despite a natural 17 per cent decline from a record fourth quarter [at the end of the fiscal year], revenues remain strong and 115 per cent higher than a year ago."

The report also pointed to strong demand for other varieties of the same precious metal, with silver prices topping £27 an ounce in June for the first time since 2011. Silver sales rose 51% compared with the same period last year, while platinum sales surged 188%.

The two-way market is active: repurchase volume hits a new high, and net gold purchases still account for an absolute majority

The figures show that a record number of customers have sold precious metals back to the Royal Mint's vaults, including gold, platinum and silver. The value of coins sold reached an all-time high, up 75% month-on-month and 55% year-on-year. Despite record buyback activity, gold coin purchases still outnumbered sales by 6:1, the Mint said "indicating continued demand for this precious metal".

The Mint highlights a remarkable transaction: a customer bought a gold bar in October 2024 and sold the position in June for a tax-free profit of £70,000.

All physical gold, silver, and platinum coins produced by the Royal Mint are classified as capital gains tax-exempt investments.

Stuart O'Reilly, market insights manager at the Royal Mint, said: "This quarter has shown a remarkable evolution in UK precious metals investment. The fact that we have seen investors take strategic actions, seeking to rebalance portfolios and shift towards silver and platinum, and that silver and platinum activity has surged in tandem with gold's rally, demonstrates that UK investors are becoming more aware of the value of other precious metals, which tend to follow gold's lead in major rallies."

Investment strategy shift: digital assets are experiencing explosive growth, replacing metals as a new favorite for allocation

It's not just the unprecedented demand for physical gold bars. The Mint says its digital gold (DigiGold) product is also experiencing strong growth, particularly in silver and platinum. "Digital gold sales are up 103% year over year, digital platinum sales are up 798%, and digital silver sales are up 1,158% from Quarter 1 2024," the Mint reports.

On Monday, spot gold opened lower and moved higher during the day. During the session, it once strongly pierced the key psychological and technical resistance level of $3,400/ounce, reaching a maximum of 3401.41, but finally closed at $3396.91/ounce, failing to stand above 3400. With the surge in market heat, Macd's daily level top deviated from the initial appearance, and the gold track trading was still crowded. The market outlook focused on the consolidation of Macd's zero axis and the stability of the high-level shock of the box waiting for Macd to repair. On Tuesday (July 22), in the early trading of the Asian market, spot gold rose and fell.

(Daily chart of spot gold, source: Easy Huitong)

At 10:28 Beijing time, spot gold prices were quoted at $3389.92 per ounce.

?