Gold mine 'could lose over 1,000 ounces'

A walkout by miners at South Africa's Virginia operations could cost the owner, Harmony Gold, as much as 1,236 ounces of gold per day.

Workers downed tools earlier today (July 15th) following the death of a colleague last Friday.

Harmony - the world's fifth-largest gold producer - said some 6,500 miners had stayed away, but reports suggest this figure could be as high as 7,800 employees.

"Workers are sending a message that says 'enough is enough' with deaths at the mines. For each time there is a fatality, the workers are going to take a day of mourning," Lesiba Seshoka, spokesperson for the National Union of Mineworkers, told Reuters.

The miners' actions could push gold price up, since they threaten world supplies at a time when investors are increasingly demanding the precious metal as a hedge against inflation.

Gold production is also coming under threat in Latin America as workers strike over fairer pay.

Peru's president Alan Garcia is facing growing calls to distribute a fairer share of the mining profits to workers who are not currently benefiting from the high gold prices.

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