Minews - China gold output rises over 5 pct in 2014

(Minews) - China's gold output climbed 5.5 percent last year to nearly 452 tonnes, making the country the world's biggest producer for the eighth straight year, the China Gold Association said on Friday.

Total consumption reached around 886 tonnes over the year, down 24.7 percent on a year earlier, the association said in a separate notice.

"Although 2014 gold consumption fell by a large margin, the (longer-term) trend of increasing demand has not changed," the association noted, saying that last year's fall came after a very rapid increase in gold purchases in the second half of 2013 as a result of declining prices.