2010-03-29 11:10

Chinese demand for gold is set to double in tonnage terms within ten years, according to a report released by the World Gold Council (WGC) in Beijing Monday.

The report titled "Gold in the Year of the Tiger" is the first-ever report of China's gold market by the London-based organization. It was released in Beijing, London and New York at the same time.

China's demand for gold had increased an average of 13 percent per year over the past five years, and China was the second largest consumer market for gold in the world, and also the world's largest gold producer since 2007, according to the WGC report.

In 2009 alone, cumulative gold demand in China was worth more than $14 billion, or 11 percent of global demand.

Within the next decade, Chinese gold consumption could double from 2009 levels, it predicted.

Gold demand in China was likely to continue to accelerate in the long term, as buyers' appetite would keep growing despite higher gold prices.

Further momentum could well result from the Central Bank increasing its gold reserves.

A majority of gold demand in China had been satisfied by domestic gold production in the past, but the growth of Chinese gold demand had outpaced domestic production growth since 1992, the report said.