BEIJING — China’s gold consumption tumbled 24.7 percent year on year to 886.1 tonnes last year, industry data showed on Feb 6.

The plunge was mainly attributed to a drop in consumption of gold bars, which posted a year on year decrease of 59 percent and amounted to 155.1 tonnes in 2014, according to data released by China Gold Association (CGA).

The data also showed that consumption of gold jewelry went down by 6.9 percent year on year to 667.1 tonnes. Consumption for industrial use dropped 10.6 percent to 43.6 tonnes in 2014.

China produced 451.8 tonnes of gold last year, an increase of 5.5 percent, or 23.64 tonnes, compared with 2013, according to the association.

China is the world’s largest producer of gold.