(Yicai Global) May 8 -- The People's Bank of China increased its gold reserves for the sixth consecutive month in April, with the global price of the yellow metal climbing to the highest of all time, according to the latest data.

The gold reserves of China's central bank totaled 66.8 million ounces at the end of last month, up 260,000 oz from March, the State Administration of Foreign Exchange said yesterday. The reserves have increased by 4.1 million oz since last November.

The international gold price rose sharply amid predictions of a recession and turmoil in the banking industry this year to reach a record high of over USD2,080 per oz on the Comex in New York Mercantile Exchange on May 4.

It began to retreat after the US Department of Labor released better-than-expected non-farm payroll data on May 5. Comex gold was trading at USD2,030.10 per oz as of 11.43 a.m. today.

The gold reserves of the world's central banks increased by 228 metric tons in the first three months of this year, a first-quarter record, a report by the World Gold Council showed on May 5. Singapore's central bank ranked first with 68 mt, followed by the PBOC with 58 mt.

Driven by the higher price of the yellow metal and economic recovery, Chinese investors' demand for physical gold also grew significantly, with China's jewelry consumption jumping 11 percent to 198 mt in the first quarter from a year earlier, its best performance since 2015, the report showed. Sales of gold coins and bars soared 34 percent to 66 mt.

According to the latest statement on monetary policy, the Federal Reserve may have completed the last round of interest rate increases, Fawad Razaqzada, senior analyst of US' provider of online trading services GAIN Capital, told Yicai Global. But the European Central Bank will take more tightening measures, which is good news for gold, he noted.

Editors: Dou Shicong, Martin Kadiev