CHINA’S gold reserves stood at 1,658 tons at the end of June, the central bank said Friday, up 57 percent from the last time it adjusted its reserve figures more than six years ago.

    Those figures would make China the world’s sixth largest official sector gold holder after the United States, Germany, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Italy and France.

    Despite the reported tonnage increase, gold now accounts for 1.65 percent of China’s total forex reserves compared with 1.8 percent in June 2009.

    Speculation in the gold market has been rife in recent years over the size of official sector reserves in China, which is the world’s biggest producer of the precious metal and vies with India for the title of number one consumer.

    It last adjusted its reserve figures in April 2009, when the level was lifted to 1,054.1 tons from 600 tons.

    The People’s Bank of China said investment in gold would be beneficial for risk management.

    “On the basis of our assessment of the value of gold assets and our analysis of price changes, and on the premise of not creating disturbances in the market, we steadily accumulated gold reserves through a number of international and domestic channels,” it said.

    The increase, which amounts to 604 tons, would help guarantee the security, liquidity and value of China’s international reserves, it said. (SD-Agencies)