Despite a drop in gold consumption, China's gold market experienced a significant increase in trading volume and value in the first quarter of 2025, highlighting the market's dynamic nature and the growing importance of gold as a safe-haven asset.
According to the latest data from the China Gold Association, China's domestic gold production in the first quarter of 2025 reached 87.243 tons, up 1.49 percent year on year. Including imported materials, the total gold production reached 140.830 tons, a 1.18 percent increase over the same period of last year.
In the first quarter, Gold consumption declined by 5.96 percent, with gold jewelry consumption down 26.85 percent year on year. Meanwhile, demand for gold bars and coins surged by 29.81 percent year on year.
However, China's gold market saw a sharp rise in trading activity in the first three months of 2025.
The Shanghai Gold Exchange's total trading volume reached 16,000 tons, up 4.57 percent year on year, with a trading value of 10.7 trillion yuan, up 42.85 percent.
The Shanghai Futures Exchange's volume and value soared even higher, with a 91.17 percent increase in volume and a 143.69 percent increase in value.
Gold exchange-traded funds (ETF) holdings also grew by 23.47 tons, up 327.73 percent year on year, reaching 138.21 tons by the end of March.
Gold prices continued to climb, with the London spot gold price rising 17.79 percent to 3,115.10 U.S. dollars per ounce by the end of March. The average price in Q1 was 2,859.62 U.S. dollars per ounce, up 38.16 percent year on year.
The Shanghai Gold Exchange's Au9999 gold closed at 730.80 yuan per gram, up 19.02 percent from the beginning of the year, with a weighted average price of 670.67 yuan per gram, up 37.68 percent.
China's gold reserves increased by 12.75 tons in Q1, reaching 2,292.33 tons by the end of March.
China's gold market sees surge in trading volume, value in Q1
