Gold consumption in China exceeded 1,151 metric tons in 2018, up 5.73 percent year-on-year, making the country the largest gold consumer worldwide for the sixth consecutive year, according to industry data. Gold consumption via the jewelry sector reached 736.29 tons in the past year, up 5.71 percent year-on-year, while gold bar consumption reached 285.20 tons, up 3.19 percent compared with the same period in the previous year, according to the China Gold Association.
Use of gold for industrial purposes rose the most, around 17.48 percent year-on-year, to 105.94 tons on the back of strong demand from the industrial sector, it said. Insiders said the country’s gold consumption was mainly pushed up by jewelry demand in 2018, after demand for jewelry bottomed out in 2016.
“We expect gold consumption to continue increasing in 2019 as the industry moves to produce more retail products to meet customer needs,” said Zhu Yi, senior analyst of metals and mining at Bloomberg Intelligence. “Output of gold is likely to continue to drop, as China is strictly implementing environmental regulations, which means that gold mines that fail to meet those requirements will be suspended or driven out of the market.” (Chinadaily.com.cn)
0 comments: