In China its not just coal and iron ore that are being produced and consumed in large quantities. In 2010 the country has also seen record gold production with 340 tons of gold being extracted. China holds extensive gold reserves as a risk protection against the global financial markets.
With the rates of gold going up by 30% in the last year alone it China still feels the metal is the safest investment. The price of gold has been constantly on the rise over the entire last decade, the longest running period of increasing value since 1920.
Most investors are known to hedge their investments with gold as that is seen to be more stable than currencies and company shares in the current global economic climate. In China gold is also a major domestic investment with households buying the metal as an investment.
China became the largest producer of the metal worldwide in the year 2007 and has since held that position. In 2010 it has bettered its gold production by 8.57% compares to the previous year as per figures from the China Gold Association.
A number of mergers of domestic gold producers has reduced the number of gold producing companies from 1,200 to merely 700 last year but the top ten producers now manufacture 49.19 % of the total domestic production of gold. Gold production is mostly in the provinces of Shandong, Henan, Jiangxi, Yunnan, and Fujian.