China is one of the biggest markets in the world. Recently their economy flagged due to overbuilding, which meant there was too much of almost everything available. To help stimulate the economy the government turned to currency manipulation, which sounds bad but is now a common stimulus tool. (Think the US Federal Reserve’s QE programs.) They’re at the point where the little guy is starting to worry about preserving wealth, and there are signs they are turning to gold and away from real estate as one solution.