Mid-Year Report 2025: Gold declaration soars to 208,757 ounces amid record global prices

– bauxite production surges; aluminium expected to increase by 6.7%

Guyana’s gold mining subsector grew by 10.9 per cent with higher declarations from both the single large producer and small- and medium-scale miners, according to the Finance Ministry’s Mid-Year Report 2025, which was tabled in the National Assembly on Monday by Finance Minister, Dr Ashni Singh.
The report showed that total gold declarations rose to 208,757 troy ounces, compared with 188,160 ounces during the same period in 2024. This increase, the report stated, was driven by record global gold prices, averaging US$3077.9 per troy ounce, as the metal’s appeal as a safe-haven asset remained strong amid global economic uncertainty.
“With respect to gold, prices reached record highs in the first half of this year, boosting the bullion’s appeal as a safe haven asset amid elevated policy uncertainty, financial volatility, and ongoing trade tensions. Gold prices are projected to come in 42.4 per cent above 2024, to average US$3400 per troy ounce this year, over 45 per cent above the forecast at the beginning of the year,” the report stated.
Nonetheless, apart from gold, there has been a surge in bauxite production and robust performances across the manufacturing, services, and construction sectors.

On this note, the bauxite mining subsector recorded an impressive 133.1 per cent expansion, with total production reaching 1.7 million tonnes during the first six months of the year.
“The price of aluminium is expected to rise by 6.7 per cent, to an average of US$2580 per metric tonne.”
The report added, “Prices of metals were higher in the first half of this year when compared with 2024. Aluminium prices rose by 7.5 per cent over the first half of 2024, averaging US$2539.3 per metric tonne, largely driven by frontloaded demand.
In addition, manganese production climbed 31.4 per cent to 165,381 tonnes, while sand and stone output rose by 8.1 per cent and 95.5 per cent, respectively. Overall, the other mining and quarrying subsector, which includes sand, stone, diamonds, and manganese, expanded by 24.2 per cent. This growth was fuelled by continued construction activity nationwide.
The mining and quarrying sector is estimated to have expanded by 5.9 per cent, driven by increased output across all subsectors – bauxite, gold, other mining, and oil and gas.
The report attributes the increase in the bauxite sector to ramped-up production of metallurgical-grade (MAZ) bauxite by the larger of the two major producers, whose output jumped from 145,335 tonnes in the first half of 2024 to over 1.6 million tonnes this year. Despite some challenges caused by heavy rainfall, the subsector’s outlook remains positive, with full-year growth projected at nearly 66 per cent.
Beyond mining, Guyana’s manufacturing sector also delivered strong results, expanding by 26.8 per cent in the first half of 2025. Growth was broad-based across subsectors, led by higher output of non-metallic products, plastics, pharmaceuticals, rice, and sugar.
The services sector continued to demonstrate resilience, recording growth of 6.6 per cent. The expansion was supported by wholesale and retail trade, financial and insurance activities, administrative and support services, professional and technical services, and information and communication – all benefitting from the wider boom in construction and oil-related services. The services sector is now projected to grow by 8.6 per cent this year.
Complementing these gains, the construction sector expanded by 29.9 per cent in the first half of the year. This was driven by the Government’s Public Sector Investment Programme (PSIP) and strong private-sector investments across multiple industries.
“With large-scale infrastructural projects progressing, full-year growth for the sector is now projected at 26.2 per cent,” the report said.
Overall, the first half of 2025 reflected broad-based, non-oil growth across Guyana’s economy, powered by the mining, manufacturing, services, and construction sectors, underscoring the country’s ongoing diversification efforts amid a dynamic global economic environment.