New | China's imports of gold from Hong Kong slump in 2014

The mainland's gold imports from Hong Kong fell nearly a third last year after record purchases in 2013.

Net gold imports from main conduit Hong Kong dropped to 813.13 tonnes last year from 1,158.16 tonnes in 2013, according to data from the Census and Statistics Department.

That was still the second highest on record, and well ahead of imports of 557.5 tonnes in 2012.

The mainland does not provide trade data on gold, and the Hong Kong figures serve as a proxy for flows to the mainland. The Hong Kong figures, however, might not provide a full picture of mainland purchases as direct imports through Shanghai and Beijing, for which no data is available, have gathered pace recently.

A 28 per cent slump in gold prices in 2013, following a 12-year rally, unleashed a wave of purchases in China and elsewhere.

"Purchases in 2014 were more measured compared to the frenzy we saw earlier," said a Shanghai-based trader with one of the 15 gold importing banks on the mainland. "The anti-corruption campaign on the mainland also hit some investment demand.