BEIJINGBengaluru, Nov 7 Reuters Chinas central bank refrained from purchasing gold for its reserves for the sixth consecutive month in October, according to official data released on Thursday.

China39;s gold holdings stood at 72.8 million troy ounces at the end of last month. The value of the gold reserves, however, rose to 199.06 billion from 191.47 billion at the end of September.

Bullion prices have surged about 33 this year, on track for the largest annual gain since 1979, driven by the start of U.S. Federal Reserve39;s interest rate cut cycle, geopolitical tensions, uncertainty surrounding the U.S. Presidential election, and strong demand from central banks.

According to the World Gold Council, gold purchases by global central banks, active in 20222023, are set to decelerate in 2024 but remain above pre2022 levels. This is partly due to the People39;s Bank of China PBOC pausing its 18month buying streak in May.

Another month of China refraining from buying indicates the PBOC is looking for a better price to build its gold reserves. We dont think China has changed its foreign exchange reserve strategy and so is looking for more gold, but deterred by the higher prices, Nitesh Shah, commodity strategist at WisdomTree, said.

The share of gold in the PBOC39;s overall reserves, a key gauge of many central banks39; holdings for gold, reached 5.7 at the end of October vs 4.9 at the of April.

This week39;s meeting of the Standing Committee of China39;s National…