A snippet from R Bromby’s article in today’s the Australian:

“CHINA’S gold imports are now greater than the entire output of Australian goldmines.

Last year, China mined 341 tonnes (top in the world) but in 2011 so far it has imported another 350 tonnes; last year, Australia, the second-largest producer, mined 266 tonnes. Join the dots re the gold price.”

Could it be that China doesn’t trust the US$?