China Gold Imports from Australia up 905% for Summer
Gold is down because Chinese GDP is down. That is the news hitting the wire today. But, although China’s GDP has slumped to just under 8%, the lowest in three years, does not mean that the historical roots for Chinese gold demand is down. China must continue buying gold in order to short their foreign currency holdings. Just this past Summer, Australian sales of gold to the country rose an astronomical 905.4%. Gold sales to China for the period of January to August 2012 have made the precious metal the second most valuable tangible export from Australia to China at $4.2 billion altogether, superseding coal. While mainstream pundits argue that China’s gold demand is down, it very well could be that they are merely price sensitive. They are sitting on the sidelines until the next dip.
Coal is also up, to be sure, 79.9% year-onyear.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics has published new data indicating that iron ore and concentrates remains the country’s leading export to China, meaning the top three are: 1. iron ore; 2. Gold; 3. Coal.
Retail purchases in China are also up, with the middle-class their eager to hedge their currencies as PRC stock continues to slump and a property bubble is sure to burst.
In the short term, a cup-and-handle signals that we might be in a bearish short term trend for gold, but this is volatile.