METAL MARKETS Communist bloc boosts sales of gold to West

The Soviet Union and China substantially increased sales of gold to the West in 1986, says the British firm Consolidated Gold Fields.

Sales from the Communist bloc, at 402 tonnes, were almost twice the amount from the year before. Soviet sales were up 50%.

Lower world prices for oil and natural gas exports (and the accompanying loss in revenue) is the reason cited by Consolidated for the increased Soviet gold sales, while China acted to boost its foreign exchange.

Consolidated forecasts the Soviets will sell a similar amount of gold to the West in 1987; China may hold back this year.

South Africa, the top non- Communist gold producer, supplied the market with 640 tonnes in 1986, followed by the United States with 180 tonnes, Canada with 107.5 tonnes, Australia with 75 tonnes and Brazil with 67.4 tonnes. Total world supply (non-Communist and Communist) in 1986 was close to 2,000 tonnes.