The world's top gold mining companies have warned global production of the precious metal is likely to resume a long-term decline in coming years, in spite of a record-breaking surge in the price of gold to more than $1,100 an ounce.
Much of gold's recent rise to an all-time high of $1,122.85 last week has been due to the weaker dollar and huge inflows into exchange-traded funds (ETFs), as investors have sought sanctuary from the financial crisis by buying physical assets.
Analysts said yesterday that there was ample scope for output to increase over the next year in response to rising prices and after years of stagnating production. That and any rally in the dollar could lead to a correction in the gold price.