Latest news with #Dh362.5
Gulf News
03-05-2025
- Business
- Gulf News
Dubai gold rate is down near Dh7 this week - that's good for tourists
Dubai: For this weekend's shoppers, the Dubai Gold Rate is lower by just under Dh7 on a gram basis, at Dh362.5 for a gram of 22K (and Dh391.75 for 24K.) That's quite a sizable price drop in times when gold has consistently been pushing the ceiling in reaching for new highs. Potential shoppers will feel a bit disappointed in that the price drop was not by a bigger margin – at several points it did seem that the Dubai gold rate could close the week at around Dh357-Dh358 a gram. But, as jewellers say, there is always another week for things to change. Latest gold and remittance rates in UAE Even then, a near Dh7 a drop will find favour with tourist-shoppers, and there have been many in recent days. 'The UAE resident-shoppers dominated on April 30's 'Akshaya Trithiya', and now most of them will stay on the side-lines until they see a bit more of the price drop,' said a jeweller. 'But Dubai and UAE still has a sizable number of visitors/tourists – we are counting on them to keep the gold trade busy in the coming days.' More 'focused' jewellery designs The time has also come for UAE's gold retail sector to come up with more jewellery design options. Andrew Naylor is the Middle East and Public Policy head at World Gold Council. He reckons that the Dubai gold business is sitting on a potential gold mine of an opportunity. 'In Dubai, you've got a big and growing Chinese resident base,' said Naylor. 'They historically prefer 24K jewellery, heritage products, slightly lighter weight options now. 'Then there are the visitors to Dubai/UAE from Europe and further afield – and they come with different preferences on their choice of gold. 'There is a real opportunity for jewellers in the UAE to diversify their designs and options without neglecting their core customer base. If they do tap a more international buyer set, that could mean more growth down the line.' In fact, there had been talk of some Chinese retailers wanting to get into the local market. The UAE's existing jewellers have also 'experimented' with how they can do better in selling to new buyers coming to Dubai/UAE – whether as visitors or residents. (There is a telling anecdote about how one of UAE's biggest master-developers recorded Dh1 billion in sales of homes to Chinese investors last year – and reached the same tally of Dh1 billion in the first three months of 2025 alone…)
Gulf News
01-05-2025
- Business
- Gulf News
Dubai gold price drops to lowest in 2 weeks - but many UAE shoppers have already done their buying
Dubai: The Dubai Gold Rate has slipped further to Dh362.5 a gram for 22K – the lowest in more than 15 days. The fairly sizable drop did not come in time for many shoppers in the UAE, who were out buying gold yesterday to make 'Akshaya Trithiya', the Indian festival where adding to one's gold holdings is a key part of the tradition. Even then, UAE's shoppers – residents and tourists – were not deterred that they had to pay for gold at Dh366-Dh369 a gram yesterday. The Dubai Gold Souq and jewellery stores elsewhere in the UAE had a heavy rush of buyers, starting from around 12pm and which continued right through closing time. It was as if shoppers were only intent on meeting the tradition of buying on Akshaya Trithiya whatever be the prevailing price. "They were picking up everything - gold coins, bars and jewellery," said Abdul Salam K. P., Vice-Chairman of Malabar Gold & Diamonds. This was indeed the best one-day sales the UAE jewellery trade has had since the start of 2025." Clearly, there was a lot of pent up demand on display, because most shoppers had been staying away from jewellery stores as prices kept on pushing higher and reaching the highest point of Dh388 last week. 'Contrary to historical trends, the INR might appreciate. Key thesis here is that the US will prefer a weaker dollar and a lower interest rate regime as large amounts of US debt will be maturing and coming up for renewal. 'Also, India's macro-factors like inflation, government finances, GDP growth and political stability should aid in INR stability. Only joker in the pack are crude oil prices, which according to me will be range-bound with a downward bias' - Prasanna Pathak, Managing Partner, The Wealth Company A little price drop helps By afternoon yesterday, the local gold rate had slipped to Dh366 levels, and which was another catalyst in the shopper surge seen in the afternoon. 'Tradition wins' is how another retailer characterized the heavy buying demand seen yesterday. "It would not surprise me if we had the same rush even if the Dubai gold rate was Dh375 or Dh385," he added. Many shoppers, especially first-time buyers, were also using the day to start their monthly instalment schemes with jewellery retailers. This way, they make a commitment to pay a fixed amount each month and for them to pick up gold at the end of 12 months. (In many cases, the jewellers put up a sum equal to what the individual is paying in a month as an incentive.) "There were younger shoppers who were getting into gold investments through the monthly instalment program," said Salam. "Their idea is to time their next big gold purchase in 12 months - and closer to Akshaya Trithiya 2026."
