China becomes a net gold exporter for first time in a decade

For the first time in nearly a decade, China became a net exporter of gold, according to Hong Kong Census and Statistics Department data.

Hong Kong imported 10.3 tons of gold in April, down from 13.5 tons of exports in March. In total,

Chinese dealers sold the yellow metal at discounts of up to $70 per an ounce, the biggest amount of savings on spot prices since 2014.

Samson Li, a Hong Kong-based precious metals analyst at Refinitiv GFMS, told Reuters:

China’s gold price was trading at too big a discount compared to the overseas price, so gold imports fell a lot because supply inside the country is abundant already. At the same time, gold flowed out from mainland China to Hong Kong, thus it turned from net imports to net exports in April, the first time since 2011.

This is interesting timing because China is set to impose national security laws on Hong Kong, essentially bypassing the semi-autonomous city’s legislature. Critics say that it outlaws large-scale public deomnstrations and could lead to imprisonment of opposition figures. China insists the measures are to secure the population.

At the time of this writing, gold slumped to a two-week low to just over $1,700 an ounce.