Loading ...Gold consumption in mainland China may match or exceed the record in 2013 after financial-market turmoil and the yuan’s devaluation boosted the metal’s appeal, according to the Chinese Gold & Silver Exchange Society, which also saw higher sales at jewelers in Hong Kong.
Buying in mainland China, which vies with India as the world’s largest consumer, picked up after the stock-market turmoil this year and August’s surprise devaluation, according to Haywood Cheung, chairman of the supervisory committee at the century-old bullion bourse. Demand in Hong Kong may expand 25 percent this half after a lackluster first six months, he said in an interview.
Gold prices are lower in 2015 following two years of losses on prospects for higher U.S. interest rates. The decline in 2013, when bullion sank 28 percent, spurred increased buying across Asia, and 2015 is shaping up well and may surpass that year’s total, according to Cheung. The yuan was devalued in the third quarter to bolster the nation’s competitiveness, and policy makers have also acted to stem a stock-market rout.