Central Bank Survery Reveals Gold Second-Most Important Asset Overall

More specifically, about 22% of central banks believe that gold will be the most important reserve asset over the next quarter century. Approximately half said the U.S. dollar. Gold was rated "most important" by more central banks than for the Euro or any other currency.

Despite their bullish sentiment towards gold, sovereigns are unlikely to start making large-scale purchases, said Terrence Keeley, global head of sovereign client services at UBS.

"Reserve managers operate at one speed above reverse," he said. "Decisions to change their investment practices will be taken after great consideration over a long period."...

Philip Klapwijk, chairman of GFMS, said central banks were more likely to be buyers than sellers for the first time in two decades. But he said: "I will be surprised if we see multi-hundred tonnes purchases."

There has not been a sustained period of significant central bank gold purchases since the 1960s.

The turn of the tide seems to be coming from developing-economy central banks, since the cultures in those regions still rate gold highly as a store of value.