Bullion: China’s gold stash rises almost 60%

BEIJING: China’s official gold reserves rose by almost 60% over the past six years, according to the first official data on the subject since 2009. The central People’s Bank of China (PBoC) said bullion holdings rose to 1,658 tons at the end of June, from 1,054 tons in April 2009, the last time the figure was released. China is the world’s largest producer of the yellow metal, but the 57% pace of increase marked a slowdown in gold accumulation after holdings jumped 75% from 2003 to 2009. Bloomberg News reported that China’s gold purchases since 2009 were second only to those of Russia, citing figures from the PBoC and International Monetary Fund. China ranks fifth globally in gold holdings, Bloomberg added. The price of gold has fallen in recent months as investors expect the US Federal Reserve to hike interest rates by the end of the year, providing a better return than the precious metal.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 21^st,  2015.

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