China is the world's second-largest consumer of gold after India, with demand exceeding 14 billion dollars in 2009, or 11 percent of global demand, the World Gold Council said in a report titled "Gold in the Year of the Tiger".

"If China continues to grow at near the current rate in economic and wealth terms, gold consumption in China will continue to expand and has the potential to double during the next decade," the report said.

Investment and jewellery are the main sectors of the Chinese gold market, with demand for gold bars, rings and necklaces reaching 423 tonnes in 2009, outstripping domestic production of 314 tonnes.

China's rapid economic growth -- it expanded 8.7 percent in 2009 -- and burgeoning middle class is driving demand for the precious metal, with jewellery accounting for nearly 80 percent of gold consumed, the report said.

China was the only nation to record an increase in jewellery demand last year although per capita consumption lagged other major gold consuming nations, the report said.

"If gold were consumed in China at the same rate per capita as in India, Hong Kong or Saudi Arabia, annual Chinese demand could increase to as much as 4,000 tonnes in the jewellery sector alone," it said.

With investment demand and jewellery consumption expected to continue growing, China could exhaust its domestic supply within six years unless it ramps up investment in exploration, the report said.

China, the world's biggest producer of the precious metal, has increased output by 84 percent in the past decade, but it has just four percent of total known global gold reserves.

"Assuming these figures are correct, WGC estimates suggest that China could exhaust its known gold mining reserves in six years from now," the report said.

"This could occur more rapidly if demand for gold in China experienced a sudden surge from current levels."

del.icio.us	Digg	Reddit
YahooMyWeb	Google	Facebook

Memory Foam Mattress Review

SPACE MEDIA NETWORK PROMOTIONS Solar Energy Solutions Tempur-Pedic Mattress Comparison ... Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News