Gold companies operating in China increased their production levels during the first quarter of 2023. According to industry reports, the Chinese gold industry has managed to recover its mining levels, reaching the numbers it had seen before the Covid pandemic, with the country embarking on a record streak of gold buying over the past five months.
China regains first-quarter gold production levels
China managed to increase its gold mining levels during the first quarter of 2023. Chinese companies saw their production efforts rewarded during the first quarter of 2023, as large mines managed to recover their numbers to the levels before the pandemic.
According to information from the Gold Association of China quoted by Xinhua, the Chinese news agency, gold mines operated by China’s largest mining companies produced 32.72 tons of the precious metal in the first quarter of 2023, nearly half of the gold produced in the country during this period. period.
China is considered the largest gold producer in the world, produce 372 tons of gold in 2022, according to figures from the China’s Gold Association, defying the pessimistic projections of reports this indicated a decline in this activity due to Covid complications, among other factors. However, last year’s figures are a far cry from the 453.5 tons produced by China in 2016, the highest figure in its history.
Central banks continue to buy gold
The resumption of Chinese gold production is essential for the country in a market where central banks have kept the demand for gold at a high level. In March, the World Gold Council said central banks are likely to continue buying gold this year, adding to their reserves even if purchases fall short of the record highs seen in 2022.
Much of this demand comes from China, which added more than 100 tonnes of gold to its coffers during a five-month buying streak. China’s national gold reserve is estimated at 2,068 tons. However, the biggest Buyer gold last year was the central bank of Türkiye.
Analysts have speculated that this gold rush could be linked to the recent de-dollarization movement that some countries have pushed on global markets. Reserves held by central banks in US dollars have fallen to 47% in 2022, interpreted by some as a flight to safety into other currencies and gold amid geopolitical uncertainty over sanctions in dollars. Jan Nieuwenhuijs, a gold market analyst, predicted the flight to safety could push the price of a troy ounce of gold to $8,000 as banks convert historic levels of reserves into the precious metal.
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