The report said Perth Mint may have to recall a potential $9 billion worth of 1-kg diluted gold bars sold to China.
The mint said in September 2021, it was made aware some of its 1-kg bars may not have met the non-gold specifications of the Shanghai Gold Exchange (SGE) - referring to the amount of components such as silver that make up 0.01% of the gold bar or 100 parts per million (ppm).
As per the SGE specifications, the non-gold component should contain no more than 50 ppm silver, it said. "We have acknowledged there have been shortcomings in the past?that led to some non-compliance with relevant laws," the mint said in a statement, adding it had since undertaken measures including a review of refining practices. It had also implemented new processes to ensure that the gold bars adhere to the SGE's "non-gold specification standards", the refiner said. The Perth Mint, owned by the government of Western Australia, is the world's largest producer of newly mined gold. (Reporting by Ashitha Shivaprasad and Kavya Guduru in Bengaluru; Editing by Tom Hogue)
