Uncovering the key features of gold flows and stocks in China

Gold is an important strategic mineral resource in China, mainly used in jewelry, investment, catalysts, emerging industries, and other fields. With the influence of increased geopolitical risks, energy crisis, housing costs, food prices and other factors, global inflation is becoming increasingly severe. As one of the best performing assets addressing stagflation, the price of gold continues to rise. This study aims to investigate gold metabolism in China from 2001 to 2020 by employing dynamic material flow analysis. The results show that China's gold consumption gradually increased, in which the jewelry sector had the largest gold consumption, while the gold coin and several industrial sectors also increased their gold consumptions. Also, the domestic gold production cannot meet its future gold demand, and the domestic gold recycling is still immature. Based on these research findings, policy recommendations for sustainable gold resource management are proposed, including the optimization of gold trade structure, the development of gold recycling network. [Display omitted] •Gold cycle is investigated in China for the period of 2001–2020.•Domestic gold demand cannot be met by only relying on domestic production.•Gold jewelry sector had the largest gold consumption.•In recent years, gold has been increasingly used in some emerging fields.•It is necessary to build up national gold recycling network to ensure stable gold supply.