Australian Gold Production & Export Statistics

The Australian Gold Ledger · quarterly statistics

Australian Gold Production & Export Statistics

Name: Australian Gold Production and Export Statistics
Creator: Mining Capital Funds
Published: 2026-08-29
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Every quarter of Australia's gold output since 1990, split by state and territory, with refinery throughput by origin, exports by destination, export earnings against bullion imports, the world price beside the price Australian producers realised, and exploration spending — taken straight from the federal Resources and Energy Quarterly.

By Clint Zahmel, Mining Capital Funds

Source: Resources and Energy Quarterly, Office of the Chief Economist
Edition: June 2026
Covers: 1990 Q1 → 2026 Q1
Refinery data: to 2025 Q3
Licence: CC BY 4.0

Mine output · 12 months329tgold content, to 2026 Q1

Export earnings65.4A$brefined gold, 12 months to 2026 Q1

Western Australia71%of national output, against 10% for the Northern Territory

Refined for others19%of refinery throughput was gold mined overseas, to 2025 Q3

By state

Gold content of all minerals produced. Every state and territory is published, so nothing hides in the national figure.

Western Australia produces 71 per cent of Australia's gold

Australia mined 329 tonnes of gold in the twelve months to 2026 Q1. Western Australia alone accounted for 235 tonnes of that, 71 per cent, a concentration no other Australian commodity matches. The Northern Territory was second on 33.1 tonnes and New South Wales third on 24.4 tonnes. Queensland produced 14.9 tonnes, South Australia 11.9, Victoria 6.3 and Tasmania 4.1. National output has risen 2 per cent over five years.

Gold production by state and territory

tonnes per quarter

Gold content of all minerals produced, tonnes per quarter, 1990 Q1 to 2026 Q1. Unlike the coal and copper tables, every producing state and territory is published separately here, the Northern Territory and Victoria included, so the bands are the whole of Australian production. They sum to the national total exactly in all but 23 of 145 quarters, where state and national figures were revised out of step; the largest such gap is 4.59 tonnes. Source: Resources and Energy Quarterly, June 2026 edition.

Gold production by state and territory, tonnes per quarter
Quarter	Western Australia	New South Wales	Northern Territory	Queensland	South Australia	Victoria	Tasmania	Australia
2026 Q1	63.53	5.92	8.73	3.70	2.97	1.59	1.03	87.47
2025 Q4	57.54	6.12	8.73	3.73	2.96	1.59	1.03	81.69
2025 Q3	57.02	6.12	8.73	3.59	2.96	1.59	1.03	81.03
2025 Q2	56.48	6.26	6.92	3.92	2.96	1.59	1.03	79.15
2025 Q1	55.85	6.26	4.82	3.78	2.96	1.59	1.03	71.69
2024 Q4	54.76	4.40	3.11	3.66	2.71	2.29	1.03	72.04
2024 Q3	54.36	7.51	3.17	3.61	2.19	2.46	0.53	70.34
2024 Q2	52.26	8.10	3.08	3.66	3.03	2.67	0.52	73.07
2024 Q1	49.14	7.37	2.80	3.48	2.66	2.46	0.65	68.56
2023 Q4	54.90	6.26	4.23	3.46	3.04	2.23	0.52	74.64
2023 Q3	52.56	7.07	3.83	3.23	2.78	2.49	0.44	72.39
2023 Q2	56.74	8.33	3.92	2.62	2.47	3.14	0.47	77.69
2023 Q1	51.84	8.09	1.96	2.84	2.90	3.31	0.40	71.36
2022 Q4	54.75	9.12	3.98	2.11	2.98	3.75	0.49	77.17
2022 Q3	53.28	7.78	3.95	2.23	3.15	3.59	0.45	74.43
2022 Q2	56.65	9.40	4.11	2.35	2.35	3.65	0.40	78.90
2022 Q1	51.61	7.71	3.08	2.15	2.39	4.95	0.39	72.29
2021 Q4	55.70	7.16	3.64	3.68	2.99	4.82	0.38	78.37
2021 Q3	53.06	6.59	3.45	3.17	2.87	5.63	0.36	75.13
2021 Q2	54.74	9.16	3.39	3.46	3.31	6.25	0.20	80.51
2021 Q1	50.06	9.02	3.79	2.79	2.85	4.90	0.17	73.57
2020 Q4	56.74	8.95	3.83	3.34	2.78	6.64	0.77	83.05
2020 Q3	53.86	9.26	4.04	3.25	3.18	6.46	0.77	80.83
2020 Q2	57.62	10.96	3.94	3.76	3.16	6.23	0.86	86.53
2020 Q1	51.80	8.90	3.61	3.12	2.72	6.53	0.86	77.54
2019 Q4	58.45	10.79	4.32	3.37	2.34	7.34	0.59	87.49
2019 Q3	52.75	9.23	3.55	3.69	2.25	6.16	0.59	78.53
2019 Q2	55.26	11.06	3.61	4.00	1.98	5.52	0.51	82.23
2019 Q1	52.41	10.25	4.07	3.94	1.94	5.12	0.51	78.59
2018 Q4	52.33	11.22	4.82	4.00	2.18	4.36	0.32	79.63
2018 Q3	54.68	10.47	3.83	4.35	2.37	3.32	0.32	79.63
2018 Q2	56.57	9.46	3.17	4.66	2.44	2.84	0.32	79.83
2018 Q1	49.89	8.36	3.61	4.65	2.37	2.46	0.32	72.08
2017 Q4	51.74	9.90	4.14	5.02	2.29	2.96	0.27	76.74
2017 Q3	51.01	7.75	3.55	4.75	1.86	2.42	0.27	72.01
2017 Q2	51.69	6.64	3.37	5.38	2.34	3.00	0.27	73.06
2017 Q1	46.71	9.47	2.62	5.01	1.95	2.00	0.33	68.42
2016 Q4	50.73	9.52	3.70	4.72	2.88	2.15	0.39	74.39
2016 Q3	48.46	10.21	4.17	4.58	2.40	2.01	0.34	72.39
2016 Q2	49.07	9.93	5.04	4.47	2.04	1.89	0.29	72.93
2016 Q1	45.09	10.57	3.86	4.42	2.51	1.92	0.09	68.61
2015 Q4	49.15	8.04	4.00	4.86	4.35	1.93	0.24	72.70
2015 Q3	47.59	8.23	4.53	5.20	2.65	1.63	0.33	70.20
2015 Q2	46.67	9.08	4.23	4.31	2.01	1.54	0.47	68.31
2015 Q1	44.28	9.08	3.72	3.98	2.78	1.91	0.57	66.32
2014 Q4	47.74	8.99	3.55	4.24	3.25	1.70	0.48	69.95
2014 Q3	46.30	9.21	2.80	3.97	3.33	1.74	0.60	67.94
2014 Q2	47.55	8.75	3.63	3.89	3.14	1.52	0.51	68.99
2014 Q1	44.78	7.68	3.17	4.56	2.86	1.61	0.32	64.97
2013 Q4	49.36	7.98	3.82	3.98	3.04	1.55	0.41	70.14
2013 Q3	44.22	8.38	3.77	4.77	3.00	1.53	0.52	66.20
2013 Q2	43.52	8.18	2.48	4.22	3.28	1.46	0.56	63.69
2013 Q1	41.90	7.49	2.28	3.69	3.11	1.68	0.53	60.67
2012 Q4	44.81	6.68	1.58	4.07	2.83	1.94	0.53	62.46
2012 Q3	41.04	6.73	2.58	3.82	2.94	0.35	0.55	58.01
2012 Q2	43.41	6.70	2.15	4.03	3.30	0.42	0.50	60.49
2012 Q1	41.34	5.70	2.95	3.60	3.60	1.36	0.56	59.11
2011 Q4	43.29	7.15	1.96	4.25	3.43	1.06	0.79	61.93
2011 Q3	42.62	8.06	2.43	3.94	3.62	1.61	0.52	62.81
2011 Q2	43.40	7.79	2.47	4.26	3.74	1.46	0.55	63.68
2011 Q1	41.68	7.17	2.57	4.03	3.94	1.28	0.35	61.01
2010 Q4	44.98	7.57	2.78	3.82	4.31	1.35	0.65	65.46
2010 Q3	43.32	7.53	2.96	4.05	3.83	1.27	0.57	63.52
2010 Q2	42.95	8.42	2.51	3.76	3.25	1.41	0.58	62.89
2010 Q1	40.14	6.77	2.07	3.58	2.11	1.65	0.66	56.98
2009 Q4	42.56	7.06	1.65	3.77	2.50	1.95	1.24	60.74
2009 Q3	36.91	5.95	1.96	4.15	2.24	1.79	1.13	54.13
2009 Q2	37.26	5.82	2.74	3.91	2.31	1.89	1.26	55.18
2009 Q1	35.29	6.40	2.74	3.82	1.85	1.98	1.38	53.45
2008 Q4	33.85	7.11	2.88	4.92	1.78	2.27	1.27	54.09
2008 Q3	33.42	8.58	3.58	4.85	1.82	1.35	1.51	55.11
2008 Q2	33.79	7.21	4.06	4.95	1.69	1.20	1.29	54.19
2008 Q1	31.43	8.49	3.78	4.43	1.41	1.27	0.99	51.79
2007 Q4	38.78	9.69	4.01	5.82	1.77	1.53	1.11	62.71
2007 Q3	38.63	8.29	3.75	6.19	1.53	1.38	1.23	61.00
2007 Q2	39.20	8.59	4.96	5.29	1.85	1.49	1.01	62.38
2007 Q1	38.91	8.29	3.82	5.61	1.78	2.02	0.83	61.26
2006 Q4	43.09	7.75	4.45	5.70	1.43	1.83	1.13	65.38
2006 Q3	41.40	6.95	3.32	5.97	1.65	1.48	0.98	61.75
2006 Q2	40.82	6.37	2.86	5.58	1.81	1.41	1.32	60.16
2006 Q1	39.86	5.97	3.40	5.26	1.87	1.55	1.67	59.58
2005 Q4	42.92	7.55	3.39	6.58	1.92	1.72	1.80	65.87
2005 Q3	41.53	6.74	3.96	6.31	1.70	1.65	1.88	63.77
2005 Q2	43.72	6.51	4.50	5.96	1.27	1.07	2.23	65.26
2005 Q1	44.92	7.25	4.70	5.77	1.35	0.80	2.43	67.22
2004 Q4	41.58	8.03	5.76	6.33	1.41	1.11	2.54	66.77
2004 Q3	42.59	7.09	5.84	5.84	1.22	0.87	2.44	65.89
2004 Q2	39.45	7.57	5.18	5.55	1.28	0.72	3.05	62.80
2004 Q1	40.60	6.45	5.49	5.44	1.20	0.75	2.57	62.50
2003 Q4	47.28	6.45	5.87	6.74	1.31	0.82	2.65	71.12
2003 Q3	46.71	7.07	5.51	6.45	1.15	0.72	2.56	70.18
2003 Q2	48.88	6.86	6.59	6.90	1.36	0.75	2.23	73.57
2003 Q1	44.01	7.11	4.87	6.16	1.51	0.81	1.87	66.34
2002 Q4	48.54	6.46	4.21	6.98	0.96	0.84	1.39	69.37
2002 Q3	46.58	6.17	4.79	6.12	0.62	0.75	1.49	66.52
2002 Q2	47.39	6.02	4.61	5.97	0.75	0.79	1.58	67.12
2002 Q1	44.70	4.83	4.41	5.99	0.81	0.87	1.59	63.20
2001 Q4	45.78	4.00	5.04	6.89	1.09	0.94	1.74	65.47
2001 Q3	48.45	3.99	5.86	7.19	1.00	0.84	1.47	68.80
2001 Q2	52.46	4.84	4.58	8.49	1.12	0.86	1.47	73.82
2001 Q1	49.91	4.27	5.03	9.33	1.11	0.85	1.50	71.99
2000 Q4	51.05	4.44	6.05	9.71	1.09	1.01	1.58	74.93
2000 Q3	50.36	4.66	5.48	8.74	0.89	1.05	1.76	72.94
2000 Q2	50.14	5.04	6.49	9.85	0.53	0.95	1.86	74.87
2000 Q1	46.68	4.45	5.12	8.80	0.43	1.22	1.48	68.18
1999 Q4	50.31	5.49	6.21	8.68	0.30	1.19	1.48	73.66
1999 Q3	51.42	5.20	5.78	8.07	0.47	1.08	1.16	73.17
1999 Q2	50.05	5.16	5.25	8.11	0.46	1.23	1.06	71.31
1999 Q1	49.34	5.20	5.06	8.79	0.55	1.13	1.25	71.31
1998 Q4	55.88	4.76	5.01	8.81	0.35	1.22	1.40	77.44
1998 Q3	51.94	3.83	4.60	8.63	0.44	1.27	0.94	71.66
1998 Q2	55.01	3.32	5.24	7.73	0.46	1.27	0.82	73.84
1998 Q1	58.49	2.86	5.53	7.15	0.50	1.14	1.02	76.68
1997 Q4	60.47	3.10	5.70	7.73	0.43	1.20	0.90	79.53
1997 Q3	56.57	3.04	6.81	6.78	0.44	1.31	1.32	76.26
1997 Q2	57.44	2.88	6.44	7.19	0.42	1.15	1.24	76.75
1997 Q1	54.02	2.70	5.37	7.12	0.36	1.17	0.70	71.44
1996 Q4	54.32	2.76	5.47	7.57	0.43	1.17	0.73	72.46
1996 Q3	50.82	2.68	5.92	6.84	0.43	1.00	0.39	68.08
1996 Q2	52.84	2.87	5.08	7.09	0.46	1.14	0.32	69.81
1996 Q1	50.15	2.79	4.85	6.70	0.49	1.21	0.19	66.39
1995 Q4	44.60	2.75	4.86	7.84	0.43	1.17	0.18	61.83
1995 Q3	44.78	2.55	4.69	6.80	0.40	0.98	0.17	60.37
1995 Q2	42.98	2.48	4.76	6.62	0.46	1.08	0.12	58.51
1995 Q1	41.37	1.96	4.14	6.58	0.42	1.07	0.14	55.68
1994 Q4	43.75	1.97	4.43	6.96	0.42	1.02	0.24	58.81
1994 Q3	43.15	2.26	4.39	6.97	0.54	1.03	0.34	58.68
1994 Q2	45.73	1.71	4.37	7.30	0.38	0.94	0.37	60.81
1994 Q1	43.03	1.66	4.23	8.01	0.49	0.83	0.36	58.62
1993 Q4	44.33	1.59	4.74	7.37	0.41	0.91	0.39	59.74
1993 Q3	43.05	2.08	4.49	6.15	0.44	0.91	0.32	57.45
1993 Q2	40.80	2.44	4.21	6.81	0.40	1.30	0.29	56.26
1993 Q1	39.19	2.00	3.65	7.07	0.42	1.25	0.29	53.86
1992 Q4	46.60	1.56	4.32	8.67	0.28	0.94	0.25	62.63
1992 Q3	45.53	1.55	4.63	8.45	0.32	0.92	0.35	61.76
1992 Q2	44.21	1.35	5.17	7.55	0.25	0.78	0.30	59.63
1992 Q1	44.94	1.19	4.52	7.94	0.19	0.71	0.23	59.72
1991 Q4	46.95	1.36	4.69	7.00	0.17	0.78	0.30	61.24
1991 Q3	45.94	1.50	4.44	7.31	0.18	1.03	0.48	60.88
1991 Q2	43.23	1.94	4.26	6.94	0.20	1.08	0.41	58.06
1991 Q1	43.31	1.53	3.92	5.81	0.23	0.87	0.43	56.10
1990 Q4	52.10	2.02	5.09	7.33	0.34	1.08	0.44	68.41
1990 Q3	43.80	1.78	4.61	7.25	0.26	1.08	0.41	59.19
1990 Q2	43.35	2.10	4.68	7.74	0.18	0.92	0.41	59.39
1990 Q1	41.53	2.15	4.66	7.41	0.10	0.85	0.42	57.11

Refining

Australia refines gold mined in other countries. That is a service business, and it is why a large exporter also imports bullion.

Australia refines gold for the rest of the world, not just its own

Australian refineries processed 292 tonnes of gold in the twelve months to 2025 Q3. 56 tonnes of that, 19 per cent, was gold mined overseas and shipped here to be refined — a service business rather than a mining one, and the reason Australia imports bullion at all. Cut a different way, 3.8 tonnes was secondary gold, meaning scrap recovered and re-refined rather than newly mined; the two cuts overlap, since 1.4 tonnes of that scrap also came from overseas. Over the same twelve months Australian mines produced 304 tonnes, so refinery throughput ran at 96 per cent of domestic mine output.

Refinery output by origin

tonnes per quarter

Refinery output by origin and type, tonnes per quarter. Primary gold comes from newly mined ore, secondary from scrap. These rows end at 2025 Q3, two quarters before the production and export figures elsewhere on this page, so the twelve-month totals above are drawn from different windows and are labelled accordingly. Source: Resources and Energy Quarterly, June 2026 edition.

Australian gold refinery output by origin, tonnes per quarter
Quarter	Primary, Australian	Primary, overseas	Secondary, Australian	Secondary, overseas	Total
2025 Q3	42.22	9.21	0.37	1.35	53.15
2025 Q2	43.97	10.24	0.39	0.00	54.60
2025 Q1	99.12	24.46	1.30	0.00	124.88
2024 Q4	48.93	10.43	0.38	0.00	59.73
2024 Q3	48.71	10.21	0.30	0.00	59.22
2024 Q2	48.40	10.12	0.37	0.00	58.89
2024 Q1	48.00	11.42	0.31	0.00	59.74
2023 Q4	51.11	10.92	0.28	0.00	62.31
2023 Q3	50.65	10.58	0.27	0.00	61.50
2023 Q2	53.42	10.51	0.46	0.00	64.39
2023 Q1	50.57	11.18	0.24	0.00	62.00
2022 Q4	50.52	9.74	0.40	0.00	60.66
2022 Q3	52.35	11.71	0.30	0.00	64.36
2022 Q2	53.54	14.14	0.34	0.00	68.03
2022 Q1	50.47	14.31	0.18	0.00	64.97
2021 Q4	55.66	13.22	0.29	0.07	69.24
2021 Q3	50.26	13.25	0.43	0.52	64.47
2021 Q2	52.95	14.73	1.16	0.16	69.01
2021 Q1	50.45	13.83	0.31	0.12	64.71
2020 Q4	55.65	12.99	0.42	0.14	69.19
2020 Q3	52.65	14.60	0.34	7.92	75.50
2020 Q2	54.51	16.14	0.41	10.05	81.10
2020 Q1	51.69	17.08	0.26	9.09	78.12
2019 Q4	59.04	15.15	0.70	3.47	78.35
2019 Q3	53.60	15.00	0.33	21.53	90.47
2019 Q2	55.10	18.28	0.28	1.71	75.37
2019 Q1	56.02	18.50	0.32	4.68	79.51
2018 Q4	55.76	16.74	0.28	3.99	76.77
2018 Q3	55.81	16.80	0.21	13.04	85.86
2018 Q2	58.43	16.71	0.26	17.36	92.77
2018 Q1	54.57	15.20	1.62	15.92	87.31
2017 Q4	54.49	16.58	2.46	9.95	83.49
2017 Q3	51.80	14.10	0.23	14.22	80.35
2017 Q2	54.26	17.63	0.43	7.69	80.01
2017 Q1	52.06	14.95	0.55	16.20	83.76
2016 Q4	53.39	16.99	1.03	12.74	84.15
2016 Q3	53.10	14.53	0.48	21.08	89.19
2016 Q2	55.87	16.57	0.26	13.98	86.69
2016 Q1	52.51	17.91	0.10	13.71	84.23
2015 Q4	55.84	17.06	0.18	5.69	78.77
2015 Q3	56.05	16.07	0.08	4.17	76.37
2015 Q2	53.97	18.19	0.31	3.35	75.81
2015 Q1	53.06	15.61	0.09	2.56	71.32
2014 Q4	57.60	19.70	0.08	1.14	78.53
2014 Q3	56.44	17.22	0.10	0.99	74.74
2014 Q2	56.52	15.62	0.11	2.12	74.37
2014 Q1	55.70	16.72	0.10	3.35	75.87
2013 Q4	60.24	17.93	0.18	2.97	81.32
2013 Q3	53.65	16.72	0.57	6.36	77.30
2013 Q2	52.98	16.93	1.36	4.96	76.23
2013 Q1	50.07	14.89	1.00	5.73	71.69
2012 Q4	52.62	14.87	1.04	7.01	75.55
2012 Q3	48.79	15.58	1.04	13.00	78.41
2012 Q2	51.08	15.46	1.32	9.22	77.07
2012 Q1	50.77	13.93	1.34	11.40	77.45
2011 Q4	51.24	17.12	0.93	17.01	86.31
2011 Q3	51.06	15.17	0.97	13.42	80.62
2011 Q2	49.63	17.15	1.01	6.90	74.69
2011 Q1	51.94	17.72	1.13	6.79	77.57
2010 Q4	55.00	18.59	1.01	15.60	90.20
2010 Q3	53.57	17.80	0.86	6.37	78.60
2010 Q2	50.27	18.02	0.67	35.33	104.30
2010 Q1	48.14	18.20	0.67	10.25	77.26
2009 Q4	47.68	18.50	0.95	20.22	87.35
2009 Q3	47.45	14.34	0.84	24.22	86.85
2009 Q2	45.41	17.37	1.20	11.92	75.89
2009 Q1	44.77	20.66	0.80	62.94	129.17
2008 Q4	45.24	19.37	2.37	21.86	88.84
2008 Q3	43.94	17.01	1.18	30.27	92.40
2008 Q2	43.47	16.28	1.24	20.07	81.07
2008 Q1	44.77	13.67	0.96	39.17	98.58
2007 Q4	50.68	14.42	1.07	33.67	99.84
2007 Q3	51.20	13.99	1.33	17.55	84.08
2007 Q2	50.14	12.27	1.08	35.67	99.16
2007 Q1	52.79	13.28	1.09	24.62	91.78
2006 Q4	54.41	15.98	0.85	15.42	86.65
2006 Q3	50.80	13.53	2.08	16.40	82.81
2006 Q2	49.03	13.33	1.43	46.64	110.43
2006 Q1	51.33	17.99	1.34	28.80	99.46
2005 Q4	55.03	15.65	1.34	16.20	88.22
2005 Q3	53.31	19.28	2.49	6.98	82.06
2005 Q2	54.46	18.16	1.16	10.40	84.18
2005 Q1	57.44	18.04	1.30	9.84	86.63
2004 Q4	56.38	21.44	1.58	7.61	87.01
2004 Q3	58.37	18.57	0.92	9.71	87.57
2004 Q2	56.17	22.23	1.04	13.33	92.77
2004 Q1	59.90	19.51	0.76	22.72	102.89
2003 Q4	65.56	19.42	0.80	14.13	99.91
2003 Q3	64.78	19.10	1.37	15.71	100.96
2003 Q2	65.28	17.23	1.08	12.66	96.25
2003 Q1	61.41	18.37	1.02	33.41	114.21
2002 Q4	58.38	17.88	1.57	14.11	91.94
2002 Q3	66.37	11.79	1.04	4.56	83.75
2002 Q2	68.00	6.40	2.83	10.42	87.65
2002 Q1	69.04	4.46	1.79	10.67	85.96
2001 Q4	66.14	4.51	6.96	10.22	87.83
2001 Q3	67.85	4.38	1.99	10.46	84.67
2001 Q2	76.29	4.07	5.66	22.45	108.47
2001 Q1	77.69	3.84	8.64	1.93	92.11
2000 Q4	72.05	4.21	4.45	0.94	81.65
2000 Q3	69.98	3.91	1.24	3.22	78.34
2000 Q2	82.01	3.44	0.85	14.50	100.80
2000 Q1	78.13	3.52	1.10	5.73	88.48
1999 Q4	79.12	2.98	0.81	32.45	115.35
1999 Q3	73.79	2.44	1.76	0.34	78.33
1999 Q2	70.57	3.51	1.17	10.50	85.76
1999 Q1	72.62	4.27	0.91	18.53	96.33
1998 Q4	75.20	6.15	5.49	19.07	105.91
1998 Q3	69.03	5.67	1.93	54.12	130.75
1998 Q2	57.86	2.56	3.23	25.20	88.85
1998 Q1	61.91	3.19	0.33	17.25	82.68
1997 Q4	78.54	4.97	0.12	7.95	91.58
1997 Q3	77.55	7.32	0.14	0.08	85.10
1997 Q2	72.58	7.08	0.36	0.10	80.12
1997 Q1	74.74	9.97	0.16	0.06	84.94
1996 Q4	72.01	8.42	0.27	0.09	80.79
1996 Q3	70.74	9.05	0.71	0.14	80.64
1996 Q2	73.04	9.00	0.91	0.23	83.19
1996 Q1	74.44	8.44	1.73	0.00	84.60
1995 Q4	65.20	7.20	2.63	0.04	75.07
1995 Q3	61.64	11.14	2.20	0.11	75.09
1995 Q2	61.16	10.19	2.14	0.10	73.59
1995 Q1	61.69	10.78	1.44	0.09	73.99
1994 Q4	58.47	9.92	2.37	0.43	71.19
1994 Q3	62.60	12.07	2.60	0.58	77.85
1994 Q2	64.68	11.77	1.56	0.69	78.70
1994 Q1	60.03	11.92	2.37	0.56	74.88
1993 Q4	60.17	10.99	2.23	0.16	73.55
1993 Q3	63.04	14.94	2.15	0.08	80.21
1993 Q2	57.64	13.11	2.62	0.03	73.40
1993 Q1	55.47	12.84	1.31	0.05	69.68
1992 Q4	57.81	10.27	1.35	0.07	69.50
1992 Q3	58.45	15.34	1.79	0.03	75.61
1992 Q2	56.50	13.39	2.41	0.06	72.36
1992 Q1	58.40	13.40	1.20	0.07	73.07
1991 Q4	57.61	11.19	0.94	0.09	69.83
1991 Q3	56.37	9.46	0.65	0.10	66.57
1991 Q2	59.05	8.34	0.47	0.08	67.94
1991 Q1	51.04	5.64	0.50	0.13	57.30
1990 Q4	64.70	5.49	1.54	0.06	71.79
1990 Q3	56.19	1.73	0.33	0.04	58.29
1990 Q2	59.21	1.86	0.40	0.08	61.55
1990 Q1	54.82	2.53	0.39	0.09	57.83

Exports

Refined and unrefined bullion together, which is how the department counts it.

Hong Kong is the largest single buyer of Australian gold

Gold exports totalled 235 tonnes in the twelve months to 2026 Q1. The largest destination was Hong Kong at 64 tonnes, 32 per cent of the named total, with the United Kingdom close behind on 61 tonnes. The trade is not simply an Asian one: the United Kingdom and the United States together take 44 per cent of named exports. Exports are counted as refined and unrefined bullion together, and the volume includes ash, waste and scrap gold, so it is not a clean measure of refined metal alone.

Gold exports by destination

tonnes per quarter

Named destinations over the twelve months to 2026 Q1. Named countries account for 199 tonnes against a reported export total of 235 tonnes; the department withholds some country detail as confidential, so the rows do not sum to the total. Source: Resources and Energy Quarterly, June 2026 edition.

Australian gold exports by destination, tonnes per quarter
Quarter	Hong Kong	United Kingdom	China	United States	Singapore	Total
2026 Q1	16.53	5.04	19.00	2.38	5.52	57.15
2025 Q4	20.66	12.77	0.00	3.82	1.27	54.47
2025 Q3	7.85	23.62	8.00	19.68	1.08	66.31
2025 Q2	19.16	19.37	11.35	1.35	0.09	56.91
2025 Q1	1.10	0.00	0.00	62.02	4.49	74.09
2024 Q4	9.51	17.31	1.00	6.21	3.82	57.29
2024 Q3	8.43	11.35	0.00	1.83	6.99	50.85
2024 Q2	23.00	15.27	10.50	2.10	7.51	63.31
2024 Q1	33.92	0.00	16.00	5.60	2.69	66.25
2023 Q4	27.25	2.94	3.00	4.75	8.59	61.37
2023 Q3	9.01	12.23	21.50	5.06	0.10	67.25
2023 Q2	12.01	11.98	21.50	3.73	3.10	60.50
2023 Q1	9.85	0.01	23.50	3.92	13.77	59.15
2022 Q4	7.57	0.00	20.48	3.71	9.12	44.98
2022 Q3	10.06	0.00	27.30	2.77	10.66	63.72
2022 Q2	28.90	0.00	8.00	3.69	8.20	60.49
2022 Q1	9.38	0.00	31.00	7.51	1.17	67.95
2021 Q4	12.32	0.00	34.59	3.86	2.53	62.41
2021 Q3	7.06	2.47	29.97	1.40	4.51	56.69
2021 Q2	12.03	6.80	24.00	1.82	4.63	56.07
2021 Q1	6.77	10.44	3.00	9.80	18.55	81.97
2020 Q4	0.03	45.37	0.00	12.91	6.64	74.05
2020 Q3	0.06	44.04	0.00	19.08	0.49	71.10
2020 Q2	0.52	23.43	0.00	29.18	2.37	89.89
2020 Q1	20.33	32.08	0.00	5.40	6.39	71.98
2019 Q4	18.03	42.05	3.00	0.40	8.18	80.24
2019 Q3	8.86	77.73	9.50	0.36	4.55	107.63
2019 Q2	8.50	34.78	22.00	0.35	5.45	81.76
2019 Q1	31.42	27.82	14.85	0.55	9.48	91.90
2018 Q4	7.12	4.16	32.70	0.62	8.98	62.32
2018 Q3	29.65	6.58	21.07	0.49	3.29	89.61
2018 Q2	45.41	0.86	31.00	0.34	3.94	90.21
2018 Q1	44.79	17.42	21.00	0.51	4.37	98.93
2017 Q4	31.35	16.00	1.00	0.22	8.63	81.70
2017 Q3	27.56	26.97	0.14	0.23	4.65	77.57
2017 Q2	55.76	3.04	13.46	0.32	0.89	84.27
2017 Q1	50.41	6.99	7.20	0.65	2.10	74.95
2016 Q4	40.93	12.65	14.10	1.17	2.52	83.14
2016 Q3	32.16	48.30	9.11	0.52	0.15	91.73
2016 Q2	26.21	46.66	6.03	0.54	4.94	85.12
2016 Q1	16.07	21.06	21.15	0.52	5.62	69.49
2015 Q4	2.71	2.07	49.69	0.78	6.80	68.31
2015 Q3	2.00	5.28	54.46	0.96	5.96	83.69
2015 Q2	1.18	0.62	39.03	0.22	5.12	52.86
2015 Q1	1.66	0.47	37.74	0.61	23.66	77.26
2014 Q4	0.85	0.78	41.61	0.74	16.91	70.25
2014 Q3	0.53	11.09	29.15	0.46	21.33	78.00
2014 Q2	1.33	2.41	38.77	0.68	9.40	63.08
2014 Q1	0.87	4.85	46.14	0.55	23.22	77.85
2013 Q4	0.48	4.24	50.46	0.81	8.48	73.39
2013 Q3	1.01	1.87	42.33	0.68	9.03	64.79
2013 Q2	0.81	5.31	43.68	1.29	0.58	75.58
2013 Q1	0.56	2.69	36.35	0.88	1.53	67.74
2012 Q4	0.53	24.26	18.36	2.71	4.97	67.77
2012 Q3	0.51	17.83	23.40	0.66	11.60	69.39
2012 Q2	0.69	15.91	49.17	1.04	5.32	82.97
2012 Q1	0.51	13.55	17.29	0.91	4.45	61.93
2011 Q4	0.40	34.84	16.00	2.76	2.66	80.71
2011 Q3	1.73	25.33	0.50	1.69	9.58	78.07
2011 Q2	3.04	19.91	0.00	0.83	7.54	71.05
2011 Q1	0.55	7.02	9.00	1.13	4.77	77.78
2010 Q4	5.55	37.60	5.00	1.04	1.13	83.17
2010 Q3	5.09	15.57	0.00	0.70	12.00	68.60
2010 Q2	0.00	62.90	0.06	0.93	0.58	98.69
2010 Q1	1.00	3.26	0.00	0.92	1.36	81.00
2009 Q4	0.00	17.31	0.00	0.18	0.55	80.70
2009 Q3	0.00	17.52	0.00	0.00	2.08	74.57
2009 Q2	0.00	12.02	0.00	0.07	2.59	81.98
2009 Q1	1.07	86.69	0.00	0.02	0.77	124.44
2008 Q4	1.08	39.57	0.00	0.11	2.16	105.88
2008 Q3	0.00	39.80	0.00	0.01	3.75	124.95
2008 Q2	0.85	21.31	0.00	0.01	2.02	94.88
2008 Q1	0.01	45.86	0.00	0.00	0.04	89.46
2007 Q4	0.00	57.43	0.16	0.00	0.02	89.40
2007 Q3	0.00	15.26	0.00	0.01	0.07	107.84
2007 Q2	0.01	8.94	0.00	0.00	4.86	117.77
2007 Q1	0.00	18.77	0.00	0.00	3.98	96.00
2006 Q4	0.00	21.37	0.02	0.00	4.63	93.14
2006 Q3	0.03	21.63	0.00	0.06	4.53	93.02
2006 Q2	0.00	41.26	0.00	0.03	3.07	93.46
2006 Q1	0.01	30.29	0.00	0.00	2.65	69.94
2005 Q4	0.01	26.13	0.04	0.01	3.94	72.75
2005 Q3	0.54	2.96	1.00	0.00	3.82	79.19
2005 Q2	0.03	0.00	2.50	0.00	4.45	78.46
2005 Q1	0.60	0.06	2.00	0.11	2.10	75.49
2004 Q4	0.54	11.71	0.00	0.03	3.35	80.69
2004 Q3	0.01	32.18	0.00	0.02	2.95	74.09
2004 Q2	0.16	4.65	0.00	0.02	6.66	75.96
2004 Q1	0.50	8.07	0.00	0.00	1.68	80.70
2003 Q4	2.19	21.70	0.00	0.00	3.70	79.94
2003 Q3	2.29	36.67	0.00	0.00	3.39	79.00
2003 Q2	3.65	39.73	0.00	0.00	3.65	76.21
2003 Q1	3.55	50.84	0.03	0.00	3.37	78.11
2002 Q4	3.26	14.93	0.02	0.00	7.02	63.31
2002 Q3	7.31	10.71	0.15	0.00	9.66	64.89
2002 Q2	6.87	31.51	0.00	0.00	9.15	72.24
2002 Q1	12.16	12.61	0.00	0.00	10.69	69.27
2001 Q4	15.43	6.42	0.00	0.00	8.55	65.94
2001 Q3	10.03	15.64	0.00	0.00	18.10	73.19
2001 Q2	12.96	28.68	0.00	0.00	13.33	83.23
2001 Q1	10.64	3.91	0.00	0.00	26.78	81.28
2000 Q4	7.25	2.00	0.00	0.00	29.63	66.12
2000 Q3	4.69	8.01	0.00	0.00	23.77	71.13
2000 Q2	2.78	7.04	0.00	0.00	31.42	75.86
2000 Q1	10.77	9.56	0.00	0.00	33.04	83.27
1999 Q4	7.80	30.33	0.00	0.00	20.37	75.86
1999 Q3	4.11	4.71	0.00	3.77	48.08	94.83
1999 Q2	3.62	0.00	0.50	0.00	44.45	81.85
1999 Q1	16.12	5.34	4.92	0.01	23.48	82.26
1998 Q4	5.45	46.26	0.00	0.71	14.33	124.48
1998 Q3	5.41	55.08	0.00	1.35	7.05	133.20
1998 Q2	10.14	15.19	0.00	28.54	17.43	132.44
1998 Q1	20.52	5.63	0.00	22.34	22.98	114.86
1997 Q4	21.99	0.00	0.00	0.08	26.20	99.69
1997 Q3	10.05	0.50	0.00	0.20	21.92	81.91
1997 Q2	7.13	0.66	0.00	0.40	26.98	81.18
1997 Q1	10.50	0.00	0.00	0.23	24.71	78.01
1996 Q4	1.78	0.00	0.00	0.00	9.52	75.89
1996 Q3	4.67	0.05	0.00	0.00	10.86	77.62
1996 Q2	3.33	0.00	0.00	0.00	12.76	84.90
1996 Q1	3.54	9.80	0.00	0.00	16.47	87.39
1995 Q4	3.09	2.49	0.00	0.00	19.37	80.27
1995 Q3	1.07	4.16	0.00	0.00	21.93	81.70
1995 Q2	3.74	0.00	0.00	0.00	17.70	73.56
1995 Q1	3.14	0.00	0.00	0.00	33.78	79.43
1994 Q4	3.15	0.00	0.00	0.00	23.88	67.79
1994 Q3	4.23	0.00	0.00	0.00	17.21	60.84
1994 Q2	7.17	2.00	0.00	0.00	17.00	63.97
1994 Q1	9.14	6.25	0.00	0.00	24.74	82.85
1993 Q4	13.34	4.24	0.00	0.20	16.20	68.68
1993 Q3	7.29	22.30	0.00	0.22	9.90	82.51
1993 Q2	5.45	3.00	0.00	0.01	15.51	52.37
1993 Q1	12.10	0.00	0.00	0.03	36.77	69.58
1992 Q4	10.12	4.00	0.00	0.03	34.66	79.65
1992 Q3	11.33	0.00	0.00	0.01	35.77	74.01
1992 Q2	11.62	0.13	0.00	0.02	34.77	76.59
1992 Q1	9.88	0.00	0.00	0.06	32.64	67.67
1991 Q4	4.63	0.17	0.00	0.04	24.18	59.79
1991 Q3	16.09	2.23	0.00	0.07	18.42	72.64
1991 Q2	12.09	0.00	0.00	0.03	15.01	52.24
1991 Q1	6.55	3.88	0.00	0.02	26.36	70.55
1990 Q4	6.87	4.08	0.00	0.05	9.54	77.02
1990 Q3	1.48	1.29	0.00	0.02	16.38	50.17
1990 Q2	6.56	0.81	0.00	0.02	14.47	50.91
1990 Q1	2.65	6.26	0.00	0.02	13.61	53.14

Where Australian gold goes

tonnes, 12 months

Australian gold exports by destination, twelve months to 2026 Q1
Destination	Tonnes	Share of named
Hong Kong	64.2	32.3%
United Kingdom	60.8	30.6%
China	38.4	19.3%
United States	27.2	13.7%
Singapore	8.0	4.0%

Value

Export earnings against bullion imports, and the world price beside the price Australian producers got.

Gold earned Australia A$65.4 billion in a year

Refined gold exports were worth A$65.4 billion in the twelve months to 2026 Q1, against A$25.1 billion of bullion imported over the same period. Australia is a net exporter by a wide margin, but the import figure is not a curiosity: it is the raw material for the refining business above. In 2026 Q1 the London Bullion Market Association afternoon price averaged US$4,875 an ounce while Australian exports realised A$7,006 an ounce. The two are quoted in different currencies and the gap between them is mostly the exchange rate.

Gold export earnings, bullion imports and prices

A$ billion per quarter · price per ounce

Export earnings and bullion imports in A$ billion per quarter, above; benchmark and realised prices below. The LBMA price is US dollars an ounce and the realised Australian export price is Australian dollars an ounce, so the distance between the lines reflects the exchange rate as much as anything about the market. Source: Resources and Energy Quarterly, June 2026 edition.

Gold export earnings, bullion imports and prices by quarter
Quarter	Exports A$b	Imports A$b	LBMA PM US$/oz	Realised A$/oz
2026 Q1	20.390	7.878	4,875	7,006
2025 Q4	16.505	7.156	4,142	6,325
2025 Q3	14.448	4.145	3,456	5,286
2025 Q2	14.019	5.921	3,279	5,130
2025 Q1	14.555	3.392	2,863	4,561
2024 Q4	9.928	2.891	2,662	4,082
2024 Q3	8.393	2.546	2,477	3,700
2024 Q2	8.863	2.143	2,338	3,546
2024 Q1	8.511	2.297	2,072	3,155
2023 Q4	7.528	2.252	1,976	3,038
2023 Q3	8.029	2.214	1,929	2,944
2023 Q2	6.761	2.068	1,978	2,960
2023 Q1	6.021	2.027	1,889	2,764
2022 Q4	4.954	1.437	1,729	2,633
2022 Q3	6.669	1.837	1,728	2,529
2022 Q2	6.475	1.986	1,872	2,623
2022 Q1	5.409	1.697	1,874	2,591
2021 Q4	5.905	1.398	1,795	2,464
2021 Q3	5.410	1.414	1,789	2,437
2021 Q2	5.095	1.800	1,816	2,357
2021 Q1	6.870	1.867	1,798	2,329
2020 Q4	7.171	1.557	1,873	2,567
2020 Q3	6.969	2.662	1,911	2,674
2020 Q2	5.492	2.654	1,711	2,618
2020 Q1	5.860	2.217	1,583	2,411
2019 Q4	5.712	1.323	1,480	2,168
2019 Q3	7.330	2.613	1,474	2,155
2019 Q2	4.908	1.498	1,310	1,872
2019 Q1	5.423	1.333	1,304	1,831
2018 Q4	3.501	1.202	1,228	1,715
2018 Q3	5.036	1.414	1,213	1,658
2018 Q2	5.086	1.879	1,306	1,726
2018 Q1	5.515	1.624	1,329	1,692
2017 Q4	4.506	1.346	1,274	1,661
2017 Q3	4.186	1.450	1,278	1,620
2017 Q2	4.806	1.687	1,258	1,677
2017 Q1	4.121	1.098	1,220	1,608
2016 Q4	4.588	1.132	1,218	1,623
2016 Q3	5.463	1.751	1,335	1,761
2016 Q2	4.960	1.568	1,259	1,687
2016 Q1	3.845	1.449	1,181	1,639
2015 Q4	3.519	0.973	1,105	1,533
2015 Q3	4.261	1.115	1,124	1,551
2015 Q2	2.776	0.862	1,193	1,534
2015 Q1	3.948	0.945	1,219	1,551
2014 Q4	3.240	0.824	1,200	1,402
2014 Q3	3.542	0.850	1,282	1,385
2014 Q2	3.006	0.963	1,289	1,383
2014 Q1	3.673	1.175	1,294	1,444
2013 Q4	3.407	1.000	1,272	1,370
2013 Q3	3.176	1.451	1,328	1,453
2013 Q2	3.631	1.119	1,414	1,425
2013 Q1	3.684	0.979	1,630	1,570
2012 Q4	4.132	1.223	1,719	1,653
2012 Q3	3.853	1.564	1,655	1,595
2012 Q2	4.321	1.442	1,611	1,596
2012 Q1	3.219	1.507	1,691	1,603
2011 Q4	4.297	2.043	1,652	1,666
2011 Q3	3.977	1.822	1,699	1,624
2011 Q2	3.278	1.275	1,504	1,426
2011 Q1	3.525	1.182	1,384	1,382
2010 Q4	3.742	1.677	1,367	1,391
2010 Q3	3.062	1.292	1,227	1,360
2010 Q2	4.371	2.492	1,196	1,356
2010 Q1	3.262	1.585	1,109	1,227
2009 Q4	3.226	1.984	1,102	1,209
2009 Q3	2.938	1.677	960	1,153
2009 Q2	3.320	1.636	922	1,215
2009 Q1	5.566	3.898	909	1,369
2008 Q4	4.044	3.054	795	1,184
2008 Q3	3.962	2.662	870	978
2008 Q2	3.001	2.110	896	952
2008 Q1	3.293	1.905	927	1,023
2007 Q4	2.847	1.414	788	889
2007 Q3	2.905	1.882	681	806
2007 Q2	3.053	1.537	667	805
2007 Q1	2.556	1.290	650	828
2006 Q4	2.433	1.320	614	800
2006 Q3	2.517	1.163	621	822
2006 Q2	2.514	1.946	627	841
2006 Q1	1.690	1.358	554	754
2005 Q4	1.569	0.732	486	654
2005 Q3	1.473	0.765	439	580
2005 Q2	1.430	0.740	427	557
2005 Q1	1.350	0.556	427	551
2004 Q4	1.496	0.541	434	575
2004 Q3	1.366	0.626	401	568
2004 Q2	1.381	0.600	393	551
2004 Q1	1.398	0.681	408	535
2003 Q4	1.460	0.605	392	550
2003 Q3	1.413	0.672	363	553
2003 Q2	1.402	0.576	347	544
2003 Q1	1.587	1.057	352	594
2002 Q4	1.281	0.821	323	579
2002 Q3	1.313	0.503	314	574
2002 Q2	1.392	0.598	313	568
2002 Q1	1.321	0.582	290	562
2001 Q4	1.165	0.632	278	544
2001 Q3	1.250	0.395	274	534
2001 Q2	1.392	0.768	268	522
2001 Q1	1.349	0.351	263	496
2000 Q4	1.163	0.340	269	506
2000 Q3	1.205	0.228	277	481
2000 Q2	1.273	0.538	280	475
2000 Q1	1.312	0.537	290	459
1999 Q4	1.214	0.925	296	459
1999 Q3	1.233	0.390	259	399
1999 Q2	1.135	0.304	274	420
1999 Q1	1.226	0.381	287	454
1998 Q4	1.904	0.791	294	472
1998 Q3	2.070	0.875	289	484
1998 Q2	2.035	0.807	300	478
1998 Q1	1.632	0.686	294	444
1997 Q4	1.431	0.334	307	443
1997 Q3	1.165	0.165	324	441
1997 Q2	1.177	0.147	343	447
1997 Q1	1.151	0.150	351	453
1996 Q4	1.166	0.151	376	475
1996 Q3	1.223	0.141	384	490
1996 Q2	1.354	0.162	390	495
1996 Q1	1.493	0.186	400	533
1995 Q4	1.333	0.172	385	518
1995 Q3	1.366	0.184	384	522
1995 Q2	1.268	0.158	388	536
1995 Q1	1.296	0.213	379	509
1994 Q4	1.116	0.176	384	512
1994 Q3	1.019	0.161	386	525
1994 Q2	1.087	0.203	382	531
1994 Q1	1.451	0.232	384	546
1993 Q4	1.241	0.239	374	565
1993 Q3	1.490	0.305	375	561
1993 Q2	0.877	0.234	361	522
1993 Q1	1.075	0.223	330	482
1992 Q4	1.235	0.268	338	486
1992 Q3	1.128	0.295	347	476
1992 Q2	1.099	0.278	339	447
1992 Q1	1.014	0.261	351	466
1991 Q4	0.865	0.258	360	460
1991 Q3	1.044	0.239	358	457
1991 Q2	0.765	0.199	361	468
1991 Q1	1.026	0.166	371	475
1990 Q4	1.141	0.157	381	486
1990 Q3	0.741	0.097	382	473
1990 Q2	0.732	0.073	367	475
1990 Q1	0.826	0.098	407	530

Exploration

Gold takes a larger share of Australian exploration spending than any other mineral.

Gold attracts A$1,764 million of exploration a year, more than any other mineral

Explorers spent A$1,764 million looking for gold in the twelve months to 2026 Q1, 46 per cent of all Australian spending on metals and minerals exploration — a larger share than any other commodity. Unlike the copper series, gold exploration is reported right back to 1990 Q1. That is the highest twelve-month total in the whole record: spending on gold exploration has never been greater than it is now.

Gold exploration expenditure

A$ million per quarter

Private mineral exploration expenditure on gold, A$ million per quarter. The share view expresses gold as a percentage of all metals and other minerals exploration. Source: Resources and Energy Quarterly, June 2026 edition.

Gold exploration expenditure by quarter
Quarter	Gold A$m	All metals A$m	Gold share
2026 Q1	450.9	899.4	50.1%
2025 Q4	478.8	981.6	48.8%
2025 Q3	431.4	982.9	43.9%
2025 Q2	402.5	937.7	42.9%
2025 Q1	293.9	747.8	39.3%
2024 Q4	314.3	890.4	35.3%
2024 Q3	297.5	910.4	32.7%
2024 Q2	296.0	928.3	31.9%
2024 Q1	284.4	820.1	34.7%
2023 Q4	323.1	1,008.8	32.0%
2023 Q3	333.4	1,055.8	31.6%
2023 Q2	310.5	994.4	31.2%
2023 Q1	275.5	824.3	33.4%
2022 Q4	359.3	964.8	37.2%
2022 Q3	380.5	n/a	n/a
2022 Q2	421.7	989.2	42.6%
2022 Q1	363.6	808.3	45.0%
2021 Q4	390.8	894.5	43.7%
2021 Q3	417.9	927.7	45.0%
2021 Q2	429.8	853.2	50.4%
2021 Q1	360.2	682.2	52.8%
2020 Q4	383.5	711.6	53.9%
2020 Q3	356.1	670.0	53.1%
2020 Q2	304.4	594.5	51.2%
2020 Q1	272.3	534.4	51.0%
2019 Q4	303.9	673.2	45.1%
2019 Q3	281.3	659.1	42.7%
2019 Q2	259.8	609.2	42.6%
2019 Q1	223.0	467.4	47.7%
2018 Q4	244.1	539.1	45.3%
2018 Q3	239.7	535.6	44.8%
2018 Q2	220.9	522.6	42.3%
2018 Q1	187.4	400.4	46.8%
2017 Q4	208.9	454.2	46.0%
2017 Q3	192.9	433.5	44.5%
2017 Q2	192.6	413.7	46.6%
2017 Q1	155.2	308.6	50.3%
2016 Q4	182.3	363.5	50.2%
2016 Q3	159.1	337.4	47.2%
2016 Q2	156.9	319.3	49.1%
2016 Q1	119.3	259.1	46.0%
2015 Q4	138.2	308.7	44.8%
2015 Q3	133.7	322.3	41.5%
2015 Q2	112.4	283.6	39.6%
2015 Q1	91.6	266.8	34.3%
2014 Q4	101.7	368.4	27.6%
2014 Q3	90.0	367.5	24.5%
2014 Q2	103.9	423.7	24.5%
2014 Q1	81.7	299.4	27.3%
2013 Q4	116.5	430.0	27.1%
2013 Q3	132.2	512.7	25.8%
2013 Q2	150.0	532.1	28.2%
2013 Q1	154.7	555.3	27.9%
2012 Q4	162.7	653.9	24.9%
2012 Q3	194.4	700.6	27.7%
2012 Q2	215.0	824.7	26.1%
2012 Q1	168.8	669.3	25.2%
2011 Q4	200.0	769.1	26.0%
2011 Q3	184.2	702.0	26.2%
2011 Q2	178.2	658.1	27.1%
2011 Q1	146.4	497.1	29.5%
2010 Q4	167.3	536.8	31.2%
2010 Q3	160.3	525.7	30.5%
2010 Q2	165.7	500.7	33.1%
2010 Q1	130.8	375.2	34.9%
2009 Q4	145.5	445.0	32.7%
2009 Q3	133.4	421.4	31.7%
2009 Q2	98.8	357.9	27.6%
2009 Q1	85.6	306.6	27.9%
2008 Q4	120.4	513.7	23.4%
2008 Q3	133.2	562.5	23.7%
2008 Q2	173.9	594.6	29.2%
2008 Q1	142.4	440.7	32.3%
2007 Q4	146.7	496.5	29.5%
2007 Q3	129.6	463.3	28.0%
2007 Q2	123.0	421.1	29.2%
2007 Q1	103.6	306.2	33.8%
2006 Q4	125.0	360.6	34.7%
2006 Q3	104.3	319.4	32.7%
2006 Q2	110.5	292.4	37.8%
2006 Q1	90.0	212.1	42.4%
2005 Q4	99.1	265.8	37.3%
2005 Q3	100.0	247.9	40.3%
2005 Q2	103.1	246.3	41.9%
2005 Q1	81.9	192.8	42.5%
2004 Q4	96.8	224.2	43.2%
2004 Q3	109.9	217.6	50.5%
2004 Q2	116.1	213.6	54.4%
2004 Q1	91.2	152.3	59.9%
2003 Q4	93.1	172.4	54.0%
2003 Q3	96.7	156.3	61.9%
2003 Q2	99.3	175.3	56.6%
2003 Q1	84.6	138.7	61.0%
2002 Q4	99.3	169.7	58.5%
2002 Q3	95.2	164.4	57.9%
2002 Q2	86.8	151.7	57.2%
2002 Q1	73.9	123.1	60.0%
2001 Q4	84.2	154.2	54.6%
2001 Q3	86.4	152.5	56.7%
2001 Q2	96.8	167.7	57.7%
2001 Q1	83.3	134.8	61.8%
2000 Q4	97.5	175.0	55.7%
2000 Q3	92.5	160.6	57.6%
2000 Q2	109.8	174.0	63.1%
2000 Q1	71.9	128.8	55.8%
1999 Q4	91.6	164.0	55.9%
1999 Q3	101.5	165.8	61.2%
1999 Q2	112.7	180.8	62.3%
1999 Q1	99.4	156.1	63.7%
1998 Q4	139.8	226.6	61.7%
1998 Q3	134.3	218.9	61.4%
1998 Q2	151.7	244.7	62.0%
1998 Q1	136.1	202.8	67.1%
1997 Q4	163.9	254.5	64.4%
1997 Q3	196.7	277.8	70.8%
1997 Q2	225.9	319.6	70.7%
1997 Q1	150.1	217.7	68.9%
1996 Q4	186.8	272.8	68.5%
1996 Q3	165.5	255.0	64.9%
1996 Q2	147.4	266.6	55.3%
1996 Q1	123.3	206.6	59.7%
1995 Q4	143.7	214.9	66.9%
1995 Q3	132.7	212.3	62.5%
1995 Q2	158.6	233.1	68.0%
1995 Q1	114.2	181.1	63.1%
1994 Q4	143.5	219.9	65.3%
1994 Q3	138.2	213.3	64.8%
1994 Q2	133.4	211.8	63.0%
1994 Q1	108.8	167.4	65.0%
1993 Q4	111.6	199.7	55.9%
1993 Q3	100.1	178.5	56.1%
1993 Q2	91.1	165.2	55.1%
1993 Q1	69.7	117.9	59.1%
1992 Q4	83.8	165.0	50.8%
1992 Q3	75.5	150.7	50.1%
1992 Q2	78.1	150.3	52.0%
1992 Q1	67.8	114.9	59.0%
1991 Q4	79.4	153.8	51.6%
1991 Q3	79.4	144.6	54.9%
1991 Q2	88.2	156.8	56.2%
1991 Q1	63.2	120.4	52.5%
1990 Q4	87.4	157.3	55.6%
1990 Q3	67.0	131.3	51.0%
1990 Q2	88.7	150.6	58.9%
1990 Q1	67.9	119.6	56.8%

Questions

The figures above, stated plainly.

Common questions

How much gold does Australia produce?

Australia mined 329 tonnes of gold in the twelve months to 2026 Q1, according to the federal Resources and Energy Quarterly.

Which Australian state produces the most gold?

Western Australia, by a wide margin: 235 tonnes in the twelve months to 2026 Q1, or 71 per cent of national output. The Northern Territory is second on 33.1 tonnes and New South Wales third on 24.4 tonnes.

Why does Australia import gold?

Because Australian refineries process gold mined overseas. Of the 292 tonnes refined in the twelve months to 2025 Q3, 56 tonnes was of overseas origin. The imported bullion is the raw material for that business, which is why a large gold exporter also imports A$25.1 billion of it.

How much gold does Australia refine?

292 tonnes in the twelve months to 2025 Q3, of which 3.8 tonnes was secondary gold recovered from scrap.

What are Australia's gold exports worth?

A$65.4 billion in the twelve months to 2026 Q1, for refined gold.

Where does Australian gold go?

The largest destination over the twelve months to 2026 Q1 was Hong Kong at 64 tonnes, followed by the United Kingdom on 61 tonnes. Some country detail is withheld as confidential, so named destinations do not sum to the export total.

How much is spent exploring for gold in Australia?

A$1,764 million in the twelve months to 2026 Q1, which is 46 per cent of all Australian metals and minerals exploration spending, more than any other commodity.

Can I download this data?

Yes. The full quarterly series is published as CSV and JSON, and the original workbook is linked in the sources below. Everything is CC BY 4.0.

Method

Where this comes from, and what it can't tell you

Source. Every figure is compiled from the historical data workbook of the Resources and Energy Quarterly, published by the Office of the Chief Economist at the Australian Government Department of Industry, Science and Resources, under CC BY 4.0. Nothing here is modelled or forecast: the REQ also publishes projections, and none of them appear on this page.

Every state and territory is published. Gold is the one commodity in this series with a complete geographic split. Sheet 27 of the workbook publishes New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory separately, alongside an Australian total, so nothing is hidden inside a national figure. That is not true of the copper page, where the Northern Territory has no row. The seven rows here sum to the national total in all but 23 of 145 quarters; in those the state estimates and the national figure were revised out of step, by up to 4.59 tonnes, and the discrepancy is the department's rather than an error in this compilation.

Two different windows. Refinery rows end at 2025 Q3 while production, exports and prices run to 2026 Q1. Twelve-month totals on this page are therefore drawn from different windows, and every figure says which window it belongs to. Where refinery throughput is compared with mine output, mine output is recomputed over the refinery's window so the two are on the same footing.

Export volume and export value are not the same quantity. Export volumes cover refined and unrefined gold together, and the department notes that the volume includes ash, waste and scrap gold. The figure is therefore a good measure of gold leaving the country and a poor measure of refined bullion alone. Export value, by contrast, is reported for refined gold only, so value and volume are not two views of the same quantity and dividing one by the other will not give a sensible price.

Two different currencies. The benchmark price is the London Bullion Market Association afternoon fix in US dollars an ounce. The realised price is what Australian exports actually fetched, in Australian dollars an ounce. Both are reproduced as published rather than converted, because converting would require picking an exchange rate the department did not use.

No mine-level detail. The REQ reports to state level. No Australian state publishes gold production mine by mine as open data, so there is no deeper cut available for this commodity.

Destinations are partial. The department names only the major buyers and withholds some country detail as confidential. Destination rows therefore do not sum to the export total, and the gap is genuine rather than an error.

Revisions. The most recent quarter is preliminary and moves as data is resubmitted. This page is rebuilt from the source workbook after each quarterly edition rather than updated by hand.

Resources and Energy Quarterly, June 2026 — historical data workbook (XLSX)
Resources and Energy Quarterly, June 2026 — publication page
Underlying sources named by the department: ABS International Trade in Goods and Services (cat. no. 5368.0); London Bullion Market Association; Perth Mint; Department of Industry, Science and Resources