Chinese buy more gold bars

Chinese bought more gold in the first quarter of this year than in the same period last year, according to New figures of the China Gold Association. During the first three months, 304.14 tonnes of gold were sold, an increase of 14.73% compared to a year earlier. The increase is mainly due to the increased interest in gold bars during the Chinese New Year.

This increase can largely be attributed to a sharp increase in demand for gold bars and Gold Coins. A total of 101.19 tonnes of investment gold was sold in China, an increase of more than 60%. At 170.93 tonnes, the demand for gold jewellery was about 1.4% higher than a year earlier. The remainder of about 29.5 tonnes was used for industrial applications, such as the production of electronic devices.

Chinese buy more gold bars

The increased demand for Gold bars and gold coins in the first quarter of this year show that Chinese savers and investors are again more concerned about the growth of the economy and rising inflation. There are also geopolitical risks, such as a possible escalation of violence in Syria and the increasing threat from North Korea.

In the first quarter of this year, China was able to supply about a third of the total demand for gold itself, as the gold mining sector managed to extract 101.2 tonnes of the yellow precious metal from the ground. That was 9.29% less than in the same period last year, according to figures from the China Gold Association.

China's gold mining sector is the largest in the world with an annual production of 450 tonnes. However, this is still not enough to meet domestic demand, as China is also the largest importer of the precious metal.

In the first quarter of this year, a total of 11,400 tonnes of gold were traded through the Shanghai Gold Exchange, similar to the trading volume in the same period last year. The Shanghai Futures Exchange was much less popular, as the total volume of gold futures contracts halved.

Chinese buy more gold bars