Five Chinese workers were injured Saturday in a coal mine explosion in eastern Malaysia, Chinese consulate in Kuching told Xinhua on Sunday. The explosion has left three persons killed and 29 injured.

Gold investment demand in China is likely to top a record 200 metric tons this year, the World Gold Council said. The country’s investment demand surged 70 percent in 2010 to an all-time high of 187 tons, said Albert Cheng, the Far East managing director at the World Gold Council. China’s “investment demand has picked up exponentially,” Cheng said yesterday in an interview in Montreal. “The financial crisis has triggered people to be cautious of anything they don’t understand,” boosting demand for bullion as an alternative asset.