Shanghai Gold Exchange Trading Jumps By 59% In 1H '10

The PRC government's attempts to cool the property market and ad campaigns for buying gold have had their effect. In the first half of this year, trading on the Shanghai Gold Exchange jumped up by 59% to reach the equivalent of 3,174.5 metric tons. Silver trading increased by a greater amount.

“Gold- and silver-trading volume expanded sharply in the first half of this year because a declining stock market, the government’s efforts to cool the property market and the general volatility in the global financial market have all fueled the investors’ enthusiasm,” Song said....

“I expect China’s gold demand to rise by 11 to 12 percent this year to 440 to 450 tons because Chinese investors have shown their willingness to buy more when prices are on the rise,” Hou Huimin, deputy secretary-general at the China Gold Association, said today by phone. “I expect prices will rise over the remainder of this year and next year,” said Hou.

Also jumping were sales of physical gold:

Sales of gold products such as bars and coins by China National Gold Group Corp., owner of the country’s largest gold deposit, jumped as much as 40 percent in the past six months, Song Quanli, deputy party secretary at the company, said today in an interview. “We have witnessed some really good sales in our retail outlets,” said Song at China National.