By Paul Ploumis (ScrapMonster Author)

April 27, 2016 02:44:50 AM

(Kitco News) - The Far East is on the radar again for gold investors as Hong Kong looks to build the world’s largest gold vault and as China reports higher imports. One famed gold investor says he’s watching these new developments closely.

According to media reports, Hong Kong may be looking to become the world’s next gold “hub” overtaking London and New York as it works to build warehousing and physical settlement services in the Qianhai free trade zone.

Also, data released Tuesday showed that there were higher Chinese gold imports from Hong Kong in March. According to the data released by the Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department, China’s net purchases rose to 64.1 metric tons from 42.9 tons in February. 

“One should not be investing in gold or anything else if they are not watching all this,” Jim Rogers, Singapore-based investor and best-selling author, told Kitco News in an email response Tuesday.

“The gold market continues moving to Asia – as do all precious metals – as do all markets. This is not 1966. This is where the population, the assets, the wealth, the growth, etc. are moving and have moved. The centers of 1966 are now deep in debt, demographic problems, economic decline, etc,” he explained.

However, despite the growing move to the East, Rogers said he doesn’t expect London or New York to lose their “hub” status in the gold market anytime soon.

Veteran gold strategist George Gero, on the other hand, said the news should not affect Western gold investors just yet although he expects the developments in Hong Kong to help the market in the long run.

“For us, it’s not as important as there are depositories in London, Delaware, Toronto, and many other places,” he explained.

Gordon Chang, a columnist for the Daily Beast and author of The Coming Collapse of China, said he isn’t making much of the news and doesn’t expect much change coming from the region.

“Many a grandiose dream has died in the Qianhai zone,” he told Kitco News. “There is always hope, but history says the current gold-trading and gold-storage plans are the next to expire.”

Courtesy: Kitco News