As if things could get any worse for the world’s gold miners, AngloGold Ashanti has joined the fray, writing down the value of its assets and curbing production plans. That follows writedowns and cost cuts at Newcrest Mining and Barrick Gold. Share prices in the sector have already fallen 42 per cent over the past year, twice the fall in the actual price of gold. Are there any gold miners left worth fossicking for?

Consider China – the world’s largest gold producer and buyer. The return of inflation as well as dwindling investment alternatives have put gold back in fashion – note the jeweller Chow Tai Fook’s recent stellar earnings. Chinese miners Zijin Mining and Zhaojin Mining are also exposed to domestic consumption.

Yet even those two have divergent fortunes. Neither, of course, is immune to the fall in the gold price – both issued profit warnings this year. Zijin, China’s biggest producer with an annual output of 1.1m ounces, compared with 7.4m ounces at Barrick, is grappling with depleting grades. Its margins are also set to shrink after the acquisition of Australia’s Norton Gold last year. Zijin’s cash costs in China of $580 an ounce are on a par with Barrick’s. Norton’s are twice that.