KEY POINTSThe gold mining industry is struggling to sustain production growth as deposits of the yellow metal become harder to find, said the World Gold Council.According to data from the international trade association, mine production inched up only 0.5% in 2023 compared to a year ago.“It’s getting harder to find gold, permit it, finance it, and operate it,” said WGC’s John Reade.The gold mining industry is struggling to sustain production growth as deposits of the yellow metal become harder to find, according to the World Gold Council.“We’ve seen record first quarter mine production in 2024 up 4% year on year. But the bigger picture, I think about mine production is that, effectively, it plateaued around 2016, 2018 and we’ve seen no growth since then,” WGC Chief Market Strategist John Reade said.According to data from the international trade association, mine production inched up only 0.5% in 2023 compared to a year ago.In 2022, the growth was 1.35% year on year, the year before it was 2.7%, while in 2020, global gold production logged the first decline in a decade, sliding 1%.“I think the overwhelming story there is: after 10 years of rapid growth from around 2008, the mining industry is struggling to report sustained growth in production,” said Reade.New gold deposits are becoming harder to find around the world as many prospective areas have already been explored, he elaborated.It’s getting harder to find gold, rmit it, finance it, and operate it.