South African 1Q Gold Production Down 12.4%

The production drop in South Africa continues, as output in volume terms declined 12.4% in the first quarter from the same quarter a year earlier.

Gold production in South Africa declined 12.4 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, the Chamber of Mines of South Africa said.

Output was 43,927.8 kilograms (1.4 million troy ounces), down 15 percent from the fourth quarter, the industry group said in an e-mailed statement today....

For last year, output declined 5.8%. Since South Africa is the heart of the peak-gold case, this latest decline should attract interest and speculation about dry-ups in other regions.


Another country reporting declining gold output is Russia; that country's production sunk 7.8% over the first four month of the year from the same period a year ago.