Re. Palladium Schmuck China:
“Purchases of palladium for use in jewellery soared  by 54 per cent to 1.43 million oz in 2005. This was  almost entirely as a result of the rapid expansion  of palladium jewellery manufacturing in China,  which accounted for 1.2 million oz of total jewellery  demand last year. The majority of the remaining  230,000 oz was consumed in the production of  platinum jewellery alloys in Japan and some white  gold alloys, although small volumes of palladium  jewellery were also produced in North America. The Chinese jewellery sector purchased 1.2 million  oz of palladium in 2005, an increase of half a million  ounces on the year before. Although retail sales of  palladium jewellery grew, the surge in purchases of  metal was driven primarily by companies throughout the trade establishing and expanding stocks of fi nished  jewellery. The majority of jewellery manufacturers had  started production of palladium products the previous  year, and most stepped up output markedly in 2005 to  fulfi l orders from a growing number of wholesalers and  retailers across the country. The spread of palladium  jewellery to stores throughout China last year was  remarkably rapid; Shanghai and Beijing are now the  only major cities where a signifi cant  proportion of  retail outlets still do not stock palladium. The concept of purity is a strong selling point for the  jewellery buying public in China, especially in rural  areas. Last year, 99 per cent  pure palladium jewellery  (Pd990) was introduced in addition to 95 per cent pure  palladium products (Pd950). This made a signifi cant  contribution to the growth in metal demand as stores  began building inventories of Pd990 items alongside  their existing ranges of Pd950. “
Johnson Matthey 2006 Palladium Report
Thanksgiving: there are
No words. A dead bird bigger
Than I am, and cooked!
-Cat Haiku