GOLD PRODUCTION WARS: The East Slays the West
Something quite extraordinary took place in 1997 which very few investors are aware. This was the year that the West peaked in overall gold production. Even though the world will hit a new record of global mine supply in 2013, the combined total of the top Western gold producing countries are still way off their highs set in 1997.
It took a great deal of effort and several decades, but the Eastern gold producers have beaten their Western competitors by a wide margin. If we look at the top 3 Western gold producing countries since 1988, we can see an important trend.
Australia, the top Western gold producer peaked in 1997 at 314 mt (metric tons) and declined until it hit a low of 215 mt in 2008. In the past five years, Australian gold production has steadily increased and is estimated to reach 265 mt in 2013. The United States has a similar historic production trend with Australia.