Wednesday, 2nd June 2004 (2708 views)

Demand for gold has improved during the last year according to the latest figures released by the World Gold Council.

In Q1 2004 consumer demand rose by 12 per cent in tonnage terms and by 30 per cent in dollar terms compared to the same period a year earlier, despite rising prices.

Chief executive James Burton expressed satisfaction at the figures. "Actually this quarter, the money flowing into gold from consumers was 37 per cent up on Q1 2002 in dollar terms, and 25 per cent higher than in Q1 2001, demonstrating a positive underlying trend," he said.

The world's biggest gold consuming nation, India saw further growth with an increase in demand of 21 per cent, with jewellery the main use for the yellow metal.

China, Turkey, the USA and the Middle East all saw positive demand growth too.
However institutional investment demand was lower than last year due to partial selling back by speculative investors of gold bought last year.

This trend seems to have continued into the second quarter but Jill Leyland, economic adviser to the WGC, also noted that financial worries and geopolitical tensions could bring more buyers into the market within the next few months.

 

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