A Bull Rush For Bullion In Asia

For background information on bullion trading, see the Q&A at the bottom of this alert.

Singapore's growth as a global commodity trading hub continues, with recent developments affecting the city's role in the precious metals market. Demand for ownership of precious metal is growing in Asia, despite (or perhaps because of) falling gold prices. The demand is driven by increasing consumption in China and India, growing private investment demand across the region – with investors drawn by concerns over weakening currencies as a result of quantitative easing measures – and Asia's high-tech manufacturing industries, which use platinum group metals in the production of display screens for hand-phones and tablet computers. The trend is supported in Singapore by government incentives, including the introduction last October of an exemption for precious metals transactions from Singapore's 7% goods and services sales tax. Singapore's reputation as a low-risk location to store