ANIMATION: Top 20 gold producing countries Frik Els | March 16, 2021 | 4:00 pm World output of gold in 2019 showed the first decline in a decade, falling by 28 metric tonnes to 3,533 tonnes or 113.6 million troy ounces. The decline came after relentless growth in primary gold production – 730 tonnes or 23.5m ounces since 2010, according to London-based mining and metals consultants Metals Focus and the World Gold Council. China is in danger of losing its no 1 ranking over the next few years – the country lost 20 tonnes of production while Russia added 34 tonnes or 1.1m ounces in a single year, shrinking the gap to 53.7 tonnes. A number of large new mines, like Sukhoi Log in the country’s east, are in development to take the country to the top spot.