As the Euro dipped to a four-year low and stocks fell further today gold prices rose. Gold for August delivery rose 0.6% to reach $1,217,90 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
South Africa no longer holds the title of the world’s largest gold producer.Currently China is the world’s top gold producing country. The total global output is 2,350 metric tons.
The world’s top five gold producing countries with the share of their global output are listed below:
- China – 12.8%
- Australia – 9.4%
- South Africa – 8.9%
- USA – 8.9%
- Russia – 7.9%
Source:Â UPI
Peru is the sixth largest producer with 182 metric tons or 7.7% of the total output. However the country is producing more gold than last year due to government policies towards the mining industry and is poised to take the fifth position. In 2009 gold exports brought in revenues of $6.8 billion.
In the first quarter of this year, gold has replaced copper as the leading Peruvian export. Gold exports reached $1.4B in first quarter. From a recent CEIC Macro Watch article:
“Gold and copper are the more important commodities exported by Peru. Together these account for approximately 50% of the total revenue from exports of traditional products.
Gold prices have been on an upward trend for a long time. For that reason, gold has become a serious alternative for investors keen on protecting their investments. Recent worries over the economic outlook for Greece and Portugal have generated some concerns among investors, which it is likely to mean that gold prices will continue to climb.
As a consequence, gold is becoming the leading Peruvian export product. Up to now, copper has been Peru’s main export product, but this is now changing.”
Related ETFs:
iShares MSCI All Peru Capped Index Fund (EPU)
Also checkout:
The World’s Top Diamond-Producing CountriesÂ
The List of Diamond Mining Stocks by Country
