Overview of East Asian Gold Investment
- Gold remains a vital household savings and investment asset across East Asia, driven by wealth accumulation, inflation, and currency depreciation (p. 3).
- Retail options have expanded from physical bars and coins to digital alternatives (pp. 6-7).
  - These include gold accumulation plans (GAPs), vaulted accounts, and tokenized gold (pp. 6-7).
Mainland China Market Dynamics
- Regulatory updates in 2026 expanded gold import ports and permit validities, while a November 2025 VAT policy exempted exchange-traded gold but increased taxes on non-investment physical gold (pp. 9-10).
- Gold investment demand surpassed jewellery demand in 2025, with the jewellery market shifting toward lighter, premium 24K products (pp. 11-14).
  - Popular premium products include antique crafted gold, 5G gold, and 3D/5D hard gold (pp. 13-14).
Vietnam and Indonesia Markets
- Vietnam plans to replace Decree 24 with Decree 232 to end the state monopoly on tael bar production, while investors turn to 24-carat Chi-rings due to SJC bar scarcity (pp. 16-18).
- Indonesia has become the world's fifth-largest retail gold investment market, with PT Antam dominating retail bars and the first gold ETF expected in late 2026 (pp. 20-21).
  - PT Antam's 1g bars are the top-selling denomination, representing 25% of sales (p. 21).
Thailand and Malaysia Markets
- Thailand's retail investment demand is rising, with a strong preference for 96.5% purity "Thai gold" bars and new central bank measures to curb online speculation (pp. 23-25).
- Malaysia introduced its first bullion import duty of 10% on minted or die-struck bars starting June 8, 2026, while Shariah-compliant products require 100% physical backing (pp. 26-28).
Singapore and Laos Markets
- Singapore exempts Investment Precious Metals of at least 99.5% purity from GST and launched the "Loco Singapore" initiative in March 2026 to become a premier trading hub (pp. 29-30).
- Laos launched its first industrial-scale refinery, LIPMER, on March 27, 2026, and the Lao Bullion Bank offers gold deposits yielding 2% annual interest (p. 33).

Market Report on East Asian Gold Investment Demand

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