Dubai gold price drops - will shoppers pre-book for 'Akshaya Trithiya'?
Dubai: Planning to buy gold for next week's 'Akshaya Trithiya' festival? The, right now would be a good time to make a booking for the actual purchase on April 30, with the Dubai Gold Rate having dropped to its lowest since April 15.
A gram of 22K for this weekend is at Dh369, well down on the Dh380 plus the Dubai gold rate had touched last week. (On Akshaya Trithiya, which this year falls on April 30, Indians prefer to add to their gold collections. In the UAE gold trade, it represents one of the biggest single-day sales for them over the years.)
'Book my purchase today – that's the plan,' said a shopper. 'I would have bought on April 30 whatever the price gold is at, but a drop from Dh388 as recently as April 21 to Dh369 a big break.'
The shopper could be better off even more going by trends for gold price movements. There could be more dips, with some analysts saying it could settle around $3,280 an ounce levels.
For some time yesterday, there was hope among UAE shoppers and gold sellers that the Dubai gold rate could even fall to around Dh367 a gram. In the global metals market, bullion prices had been dropping after pushing through to $3,500 an ounce early this week. It's at $3,318 now.
Gold bars or jewellery?
For the first time in some days, jewellery sources are exuding hope that the last week of April is heading for solid sales. Apart from resident shoppers who will come calling on April 30, gold retailers are expecting sizable batches of visitors who will be in town for the Arabian Travel Market in Dubai next weekend. (In India, one gram of 22k is at Rs8,760, down by Rs66.)
"It doesn't matter whether shoppers want gold bars or jewellery," said a retailer. "We just want shoppers back. The recent price rise had spooked everyone.
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