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Australian gold output rose 14 percent in the fourth quarter last year, helped by Newmont Mining Corp.’s Boddington mine, confirming the country as the world’s second-biggest producer, a research group said.

Gold production in Australia rose to 62 metric tons during the three months to Dec. 31, Melbourne-based Surbiton Associates Pty said in an e-mailed statement. Full-year output climbed 3 percent to 227 tons, making the country the second-largest producer, Surbiton said.

“The increase in Australian gold output in the December quarter was assisted by the long-awaited opening of the giant, re-developed Boddington operation,” said Sandra Close, a director of Surbiton Associates, which collates results from Australia’s gold-mining companies to produce its numbers.

China’s output reached 314 metric tons last year, making it the world’s biggest gold producer, the research group said. The U.S. produced 216 tons and South Africa 210 tons, Surbiton said.

Gold futures rose March 5, capping a weekly gain, on investment demand for the metal as an alternative to holding currency. Futures for April delivery rose $2.10, or 0.2 percent, to $1,135.20 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.

source : bloomberg.com

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