China 2009 Gold Demand, Output May Gain to Records

Bloomberg reports:

China, the world’s largest gold producer, may have record demand and output this year as jewelry consumption soars and miners expand production after prices reached all-time highs, according to the China Gold Association.

The country’s gold demand may be more than 450 metric tons this year, up from 395.6 tons in 2008, and output may climb to 310 tons, compared with 282 tons a year earlier, Zhang Yongtao, deputy secretary-general of the association, said at a conference in Kunming today. Annualized growth in China’s gold production was 9.5 percent in the past eight years, he said.