Australian Gold Production has Fallen to its Lowest level in 13 Years

The Australian gold production has fallen to its lowest levels in 13 years an industry survey by Melbourne Australia based consultants Surbiton Associates.

The report by Surbiton Associates shows that Australia's gold production fell 5 percent to 249 metric tons in 2006 from 263 tons in 2005. This is the lowest Australian gold production since 1993.

However, the value of Australian gold production for 2006 has increased almost 30 percent to 6.4 billion Australian Dollars says Surbiton Associates director Sandra Close.


Australian Gold Production 1981 to 2003 Source: Australian Gold Statistics

Australia has now moved to third spot among the world's gold producers. Last year, South Africa, the world's largest gold producer by far, saw its lowest gold production in 84 years. Gold sales dropped to 275 tonnes, down from 297 tonnes in 2005.

Falling global gold production is likely to be a continuing trend that will make this gold bull market very different to the last gold bull market. In the gold bull market of the 1970s there was plenty of gold supply and the gold mining companies where growing their gold production every year as gold demand increased. Today that situation doesn't exist and will result in much higher gold prices in the years ahead.