Germany plans to bring back 1,200 tons of gold from US vaults: Why now?

For decades, Berlin has kept 1,200 tons of its gold reserves — the second-largest in the world, after the United States’ reserves — stored deep underground at the Federal Reserve in Manhattan.

Now, senior members of the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU), which is set to lead Germany's next government, are discussing the possibility of moving the gold out of New York due to concerns that Washington may no longer be a reliable partner.

"Of course, the question has arisen again," said Marco Wanderwitz, former German government minister, who this year stepped down from his seat in the Bundestag representing the CDU.

Marcus Ferber, a member of the European Parliament from the CDU, also stated that he supports allowing German officials to personally inspect the gold bars.

"I demand regular checks of Germany’s gold reserves. Official representatives of the Bundesbank must personally count the bars and document their results," he said.

Michael Yeager, a member of the European Taxpayers Association, said it would be better to "bring all German gold reserves to Frankfurt or at least to Europe as quickly as possible."

Where Germany’s gold comes from

Germany became wealthy after World War II, when exports surged, leading to a significant positive trade balance with other countries. These surpluses were converted into gold under the Bretton Woods system.

The estimated value of Germany's Manhattan reserves is €113 billion ($96 billion), which represents 30% of the country's total gold holdings.

Before the tariffs imposed by the Trump administration, storing German gold in the US vault was considered a sensible measure, as it provided access to dollar liquidity in case of a serious economic downturn.