UNITED STATES May 14 2015 5:33 PM

NEW YORK (Scrap Register): Global gold supply remained virtually unchanged at 1,089 tons as a 2% rise in Q1 2015 mine production to 729 tons was balanced by a 3% fall in recycling to 355 tons, compared with the same quarter last year, as per the latest figures from the London based World Gold Council.

 

However, the first three months of this year saw stable gold demand, according to the latest Gold Demands Trends report from the World Gold Council. Total demand for Q1 2015 was 1,079 tons, down just 1% on the same period last year.

 

Conditions differed from market to market, but at an aggregate level, these differences broadly balanced each other out. 

 

Once again, consumers in Eastern countries dominated the market with China and India alone accounting for 54% of total global consumer demand in the quarter.

 

Total investment demand was up 4% to 279t, compared to 268t in the same quarter the previous year. Demand for bars and coins fell 10% from the previous year to 253t as retail investors, notably in India, diverted their money into equities in the wake of the country’s strong stock market performance. However ETFs saw their first inflows since Q4 2012, albeit at the modest rate of 26t.