China's love affair with gold heats up on property boom riches

By Ranjeetha Pakiam and Daniela Wei
Bloomberg News
Tuesday, February 6, 2018

China's growing throng of affluent consumers is driving a rebound in demand for gold rings, bracelets, and necklaces as a property boom and high stock market valuations boost wealth in the largest bullion market.

"Things are much more positive than they were this time last year," and the jewelry market has bottomed out after three years of declines, said Nikos Kavalis, London-based director of research firm Metals Focus Ltd. Colleagues who visited the southern commercial hub of Shenzhen in early January told him showrooms were quite busy and wholesalers expected clients to return to replenish their stocks before Lunar New Year in the middle of February.

The nation's demand for gold jewelry climbed 10 percent last year to almost 700 metric tons as the wealthy increased purchases and consumption improved in second- and third-tier cities, according to the China Gold Association. Buying of ornaments represented more than 60 percent of the 1,090 tons of gold consumed in China last year and made up a third of world jewelry demand. ...

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