Thursday, 17th May 2007 (2948 views)

The Chinese year of the Golden Pig proved to be particularly auspicious in the gold world with lucky balls in China proving extremely popular, according to the World Gold Council (WGC).

A new report by the council shows that gold demand among Chinese customers rose by 31 per cent during the first quarter of this year, propelled by a rising demand for commemorative lucky golden balls.

In terms of tonnage, during the first quarter of 2007, 831.7 were recorded as opposed to a demand of 797.8 tonnes reported during the corresponding period last year.

According to Neil Ryan, vice-president and director of economic research at Blanchard & Co, who spoke to Resource Investor: "The WGC cites total demand for gold in the first quarter at record levels and four per cent higher than in Q1 2006. Jewellery demand in India picked up a bit as prices stabilized and demand across the board in China has ramped up."

It is custom in China to purchase the lucky balls and then hang them on a thread, creating either a bracelet or necklace.

 

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