Bank of China first Chinese bank to join gold price benchmark

A man rides in front of a Bank of China branch in Fuzhou, Fujian province, July 10, 2013. [Photo/IC]

The Bank of China will join seven others on the electronic platform that sets the gold price benchmark, the London Bullion Market Association said on Tuesday.

BOC joins Goldman Sachs, UBS, Barclays, HSBC, Bank of Nova Scotia, Societe Generale and JP Morgan to set the gold price, administered by ICE Benchmark Administration, which replaced the century-old gold "fix" in March.

The benchmark is widely used by producers, consumers and investors to trade and value the metal.

Bank of China joined the LBMA as an initial member in 1987, and has been participating in the gold trading business in London for over forty years, BOC general manager Yu Sun said.

China is the world's second biggest gold consumer and largest producer, China has never played a major role in the global gold fixing, he added.

However China is looking at establishing its presence as a benchmark hub that could compete with the London benchmark.

China's state-run Shanghai Gold Exchange said last month it was working on launching new price benchmark fixing products as a new service to market participants.