South African Gold Production Declined 2% in Second Quarter, Chamber Says – Bloomberg

Gold production in South Africa, the
fourth-largest producer of the precious metal, fell 2 % in
the second quarter from a year earlier, the Chamber of Mines of
South Africa said.

Output declined to 1.59 million ounces, from 1.62 million
ounces a year earlier, the industry group said in an e-mailed
statement today. Compared with the previous quarter, production
climbed 13 %, it said.

South African gold output fell 5.8 % last year,
making the nation the largest producer after China, Australia
and the U.S., the Chamber said on March 12. South Africa was the
world’s largest producer for much of the twentieth century.

Last year the industry earned about 48.7 billion rand ($6.6
billion) from sales of gold, making the metal the country’s
second-largest export after platinum group metals. The chamber
represents producers including AngloGold Ashanti Ltd., Gold
Fields Ltd. and Harmony Gold Mining Ltd.

To contact the reporter on this story:
Alastair Reed in Johannesburg at
areed12@bloomberg.net