Gold Trading Volumes Up On Weaker Prices

Gold Trading volume on the Shanghai Gold Exchange for the benchmark 99.99% purity climbed to a new record. It exceeded 22 metric tons today for the first time ever, as China returned to the markets after a week long Lunar New Year holiday. Last week's slump provided great incentive for buying, as many Chinese are still holding a bullish outlook on Bullion. China’s Gold consumption amounted to 832.18 tons in 2012, an increase of 9.35% from a year earlier. The demand for Gold Jewelry rose 10.09% year on year to 502.75 tons, while those of Gold Bars and Gold Coins gained 12.22% and 21.63%, respectively, to 239.98 tons and 25.3 tons. China produced 403.05 tons of Gold Bullion in 2012, making it the world’s largest producer for the sixth year running. China is currently the world’s second-largest gold consumer after India.

India may take longer time to weaken its Gold Demand:
Gold Demand from India has been above average after last week’s sell off. “Appetite from India has been quite unimpressive of late, although buyers did respond to last Friday’s sell off,” Bloomberg reported . Following the government's strictdirective, India’s second-biggest gold importer, state-run MMTC Ltd said it will take further steps to curb purchases. MMTC expects its Gold Imports for the FY ending March 31, 2013 are likely to fall to 30-40 tons from 160 tons a year earlier. The passion for Gold in India – the world’s top gold consumer is legendary, and it will take far more than a few duty hikes to wean it. Meanwhile, if the INR continues its northbound journey, Gold Prices will seem attractive even with the duty hikes, which will in turn mean more imports.

Iran Rejects Gold for Nuclear Power:
Tighter US sanctions wiped off Turkey’s Gold-for-Gas trade with Iran, and have stopped the Turkish state-owned lender Halkbank from processing other nations’ energy payments to the OPEC oil producer. The US sought to prevent Turkish gold exports, which indirectly pay Iran for its natural gas, from providing a financial lifeline to Tehran. A group of countries including Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States, known as P5 +1, wants Iran to do more to prove that its nuclear program is for only non-military purposes, and to permit comprehensive U.N. inspections. On Friday, an anonymous source said that the P5+1 plan to offer an easing of sanctions barring trade in gold and other Precious Metals with Iran, in return for a shutdown of the newly expanded Fordow uranium enrichment plant. The Iranian foreign ministry said the offer was unacceptable, and accused western powers of attempting to take away the rights of a nation in exchange for Gold Trading.