Gold regains lustre, seventh gain in nine sessions

Gold futures settled higher for the seventh time in the past nine sessions on Thursday, as the yellow metal continues to attract investors following the latest comments from Fed chairman Ben Bernanke regarding stimulus.

Gold for August delivery gained 0.5 percent to end at $1,284.20 an ounce on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Physical demand for the yellow metal in China remains very strong, with the country set to pass India as the largest bullion consumer - potentially before the end of this year.

Recent data from the Shanghai Gold Exchange showed that it supplied 1,098 metric tons in the first half of 2013, which is close to the 1,139 tonnes for the whole of 2012.

China is currently the world's biggest gold producer with over 400 tonnes last year, which highlights the vast gap between domestic production and demand.
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