China becomes world largest gold consumer in 2013

China became the largest gold market in the world for the first time in 2013, said a report released by the London-based World Gold Council (WGC) on Tuesday.

Demand for gold in China set a remarkable new record of 1,066 tonnes, a rise of 32 percent year on year, said the WGC's annual Gold Demand Trends report.

The consumer-drving demand of gold was largely attributed to the sharp fall in the gold price in the second quarter, it added.

Globally, the global demand in 2013 declined 15 percent to 3,756.1 tonnes compared to 2012, while jewellery demand saw the largest volume increase since 1997 to full year demand of 2,209 tonnes, up 17 percent year on year.

The United States top the official gold holdings among countries with 8,133.5 tonnes, while China ranked 6th with 1,054.1 tonnes.

"We still see China in a long-term growth path and it will definitely make a major contribution to the market this year and more than likely could still be the largest gold market in the world by the end of the year,"said Marcus Grubb, the Manager for Investment at the World Gold Council,out looking the gold demand in 2014.

Based in London, the WGC is the market development organization for the gold industry.