Philippines ranked fifth top gold producer in Asia

NEW DELHI, India — The Philippines has ranked as the fifth top gold producer in Asia, one of six countries that produce 91 percent of the precious metal in the continent.

China leads the gold-producing nations.

China became the top producer of gold in 2012. The production rose from 12 tons in 204 to 397 tons in 2013.

In 2015, according to GFMS Gold Survey 2016, China produced 458.1 metric tons of the gold. The survey says that China recorded a 14 per cent, a year-on-year gain to a record high.

China is followed by Indonesia. The archipelago in Southeast Asia, according to GFMS Gold Survey 2016, produced 134.3 metric tons of the gold in 2015.

Indonesia is the home to one of the largest gold mines in the world known as the Grasberg Mine. The mine contributes the majority of Indonesia’s gold production.

At the third place comes Central Asian country, Uzbekistan. The country in 2015 produced 83.2 metric tons of the gold. Gold production plays an important role in Uzbekistan economy. In Uzbekistan gold is mostly found in the Kyzylkum Desert where Muruntau Gold Deposit, the largest single open-pit gold mine, is located.

Kazakhstan with 47.5 metric tons of production, Philippines with 46.8 metric tons and Mongolia with 31.3 metric tons are at fourth, fifth and sixth place respectively, according to the survey.

Despite India being the world’s biggest buyer of gold, its contribution to world gold production is an insignificant 0.5 per cent.

The survey says global mine production increased by just 1 per cent in 2015, reaching 3,158 tones, with gains in countries like Indonesia and the United States overweighing the losses elsewhere, particularly in China.

This represents seventh successive year of increasing mine supply, and is another year of record global output./rga