Gold Appetite Shrinks in Thailand Amid Political Deadlock

Gold shipments to Southeast Asia’s biggest consumer are forecast to contract by as much as half this year, a sign the unprecedented Asian demand that helped stem last year’s rout in prices is weakening.

Thailand’s purchases may be 150 to 200 metric tons because of falling prices and the country’s political crisis, according to YLG Bullion International Co., the largest local importer. They fell 78 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier and totaled 314 tons in 2013, valued at about $13 billion.