Chinese Investors Double Purchases: China Surpasses India and Is Now World’s Top Gold Market
China has surpassed India as the world’s top gold market, after Chinese investors more than doubled their purchases of gold during the first quarter, compared to the same period last year.
Some US$4.1 billion was channelled into gold bars and coins by Chinese investors during this period, during which China’s investment demand increased to 90.0 metric tonnes (40.7 tonnes in the year prior), compared to India’s 85.6 tonnes. The data is taken from the World Gold Council’s quarterly report which was published on Thursday.
During the first quarter, investments into bullion surged 179%, totalling US4.1 billion.
The higher interest in investment gold was accompanied by an increase in jewellery shops as well as banks that now offer gold bars and coins in investment form.
While the World Gold Council had forecasted that China’s annual gold consumption would double by the end of the decade, it now said it is rethinking its initial prediction considering the accelerated consumption trend noted.
“We believe that this doubling may in fact be achieved sooner,” the Council’s managing director for the Far East, Albert Cheng, said.
The council said it believes the increase is driven by investors who are seeking a hedge against inflation.
Since the trade in bullion was liberalised in 2001, the gold demand in China has increased with an average annual rate of 14%.
According to the council, jewellery make up 64% of annual demand, investment 27%, and industry 6%.
A scheme to promote gold through gifting investments is finding traction among Chinese investors, the council noted. The scheme, in which customers purchase gold pieces in the range of 10 grams to 1,000 grams, was launched in mid-February in association with the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China LTD.
The scheme generated 1.8 tonnes in orders in the six-week period leading up to the end of the last quarter.
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