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The total number of hallmarked items plummeted 24.8% in February, a decrease of 189,700 pieces when compared with the same month last year.
Figures released by the four UK assay offices, and compiled by the Birmingham Assay Office, showed there was a total of 576,610 articles hallmarked during the month – down from the 766,310 items recorded in February 2016.
The high-value category of gold recorded the sharpest fall, down 30.5% from 403,168 articles hallmarked in February last year to 280,283.
The popular 9-carat gold category saw hallmarking fall 31.1% from 276,550 items to 190,457, while the number of 18-carat gold items hallmarked fell 19%.
The number of silver items hallmarked also fell 20% from 332,515 items to 265,974, and platinum fell marginally by 3.2%.
Palladium was the only precious metal not to record a fall, with the number of hallmarked items increasing 6.6% from 6,642 last year to 7,144.
