Hello, Rachel Pupazzoni jumping in with a little gold update for you.

Australia's gold production slumped in the first three months of this year, but with the price for the yellow metal at record highs, it's not all bad news.

Analysis by Surbiton Associates reveals Australian gold mines produced 72 tonnes of gold in the three months to the end of April - down 6 tonnes, or 8%, on the December quarter.

Gold analyst Dr Sandra Close said it's because of bad weather caused by the cyclone season limiting mining companies' ability to get work done.

But the gold price has been on a tear, currently worth about $AU2,971, ($US1,941) so fewer tonnes are still delivering good results for the miners.

"At prevailing price and exchange rates, the Australian gold industry is now worth around $AU30 billion on an annual basis," Dr Close said.

Production was down 66,000 ounces at US miner Newmont's Boddington mine, while it slumped 35,800 ounces at Australian miner Newcrest's Cadia mine.

Meanwhile, Newmont's acquisition of Newcrest is still waiting regulatory approval.

If the deal goes ahead, Newcrest shareholders will receive 0.4 Newmont shares for each Newcrest share they own.

The offer values Newcrest at $28.8 billion.

Newcrest shares are trading higher today, worth about $25.98 at 12.30pm today.