$4 billion in nonmonetary metal shipped out in December
Booming demand for
gold as a store of wealth among Asian investors is driving physical
gold bars and
coins out of the United States and into Asia.
A growing number of
gold vaults for affluent Asians and new
precious metals investment products, particularly exchange-traded funds, have led to an exodus of
gold owned privately from the United States into emerging economic powers such as China.
On Friday, Commerce Department data showed U.S. exports of nonmonetary
gold, which excludes central bank transactions, soared by 43 percent to $4 billion in December from the previous month.
That's the highest total and the biggest month-on-month jump in U.S. private
gold exports since September 2011, when
gold rallied to a record high over $1,920 an ounce. ...
Hong Kong accounted for around $2 billion, or half of the nonmonetary
gold exports for the month.
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