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Economic Times
23-07-2025
- Business
- Economic Times
Gold price crosses Rs 1 lakh per 10 gm, dampens festive jewellery demand
Gold touched the Rs 1 lakh per 10 gm mark on Wednesday dampening the mood among jewellers who now fear a further dent in sales ahead of the crucial festive season. The prices have crossed this threshold after almost two months. ADVERTISEMENT The yellow metal has gained nearly 2% this week — climbing from Rs 98,791 per 10 gm on Monday to Rs 1,00,502 per 10 gm on Wednesday at the retail end. With a 3% goods & services tax, net consumer price is now Rs 1,03,507 per 10 gm. 'China is heavily buying gold. The Central Banks across the globe too are buying gold. Big investors are also purchasing gold. All these factors are driving the gold prices,' said Surendra Mehta, national secretary of the India Bullion & Jewellers Association (IBJA), the apex industry body. Prices of gold had last touched Rs 1 lakh per 10 gm on April 22, following the trade war between the US and China with the former announcing higher tariffs on too shot up to Rs 1,15,500 per kg on Wednesday from Rs 1,11,000 per kg on Tuesday, a surge of Rs 4,500 per kg in a single day. The precious metals are being boosted by lower dollar index and the US trade tariff uncertainty supporting safe-haven buying, analysts Indian rupee came under pressure following NATO's warning of secondary sanctions on Russian oil imports leading to an additional increase in gold and silver prices locally. India imports both the precious metals and if the rupee comes under pressure then prices go up automatically. ADVERTISEMENT Suvankar Sen, managing director of jewellery chain Senco Gold, said the price rise is forcing consumers to buy lightweight gold jewellery within their budget. 'Volume-wise the drop will be 15%. If the price rise continues, then demand for 18 karat, 14 karat and 9 karat gold jewellery will increase,' he said. The festive season, which starts next month with Raksha Bandhan and continues till Diwali in October, is one of the biggest consumption periods of gold, apart from the wedding season in winter. ADVERTISEMENT India's largest retailer Reliance Retail chief financial officer Dinesh Taluja told analysts last week that the substantial increase in gold prices may have increased bill values (for its jewellery business), but the number of bills have come down. 'The business is on steady growth, but obviously there is an impact on the significant increase in gold prices. In volume terms, the demand for gold has gone down,' he IBJA official said that jewellery sales in Raksha Bandhan will not be good as consumers are not able to accept the price of Rs 1 lakh. In the gold hub Zaveri Bazaar in Mumbai, footfalls have fallen significantly. 'Unless the price settles near Rs 93,000 - Rs 94,000 per 10 gm, demand will not see an uptick,' Mehta said. ADVERTISEMENT Persistently high gold prices have suppressed demand, prompting consumers to defer non-essential purchases and opt for more affordable alternatives such as lightweight, lower-karat, silver or studded Chacko, research head for India at World Gold Council, said the trend of exchanging old jewellery to manage costs continued to gain traction as per market reports. ADVERTISEMENT However, investment-oriented buying may continue, with a growing preference for gold bars, coins and plain gold chains (seen as quasi-investments), which are favoured for their lower fabrication charges. 'As per anecdotal reports, demand has been concentrated in lower-grammage coins, particularly those weighing less than 10gm,' Chacko said. (You can now subscribe to our ETMarkets WhatsApp channel)
Time of India
22-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
IBJA asks Bureau of Indian Standards to implement mandatory self-hallmarking of silver products by jewellers
The India Bullion & Jewellers Association (IBJA) has written to the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) to implement mandatory self-hallmarking of silver products by jewellers themselves instead of hallmarking agencies, otherwise there could be high costs for jewellers which they may be forced to pass to consumers. The jewellery and gold trade association said moving bulky silver artefacts like silver utensils, furniture and idols to hallmarking centres will result in high logistic costs. For small items like jewellery and silverwares the weight is very less and hence the price is also within Rs 3,000 as per current silver price. Explore courses from Top Institutes in Please select course: Select a Course Category MBA PGDM MCA Finance Digital Marketing Management Artificial Intelligence Data Science Public Policy Healthcare Cybersecurity Others healthcare Degree Product Management Leadership Project Management Operations Management CXO Data Science others Data Analytics Design Thinking Skills you'll gain: Analytical Skills Financial Literacy Leadership and Management Skills Strategic Thinking Duration: 24 Months Vellore Institute of Technology VIT Online MBA Starts on Aug 14, 2024 Get Details Skills you'll gain: Financial Management Team Leadership & Collaboration Financial Reporting & Analysis Advocacy Strategies for Leadership Duration: 18 Months UMass Global Master of Business Administration (MBA) Starts on May 13, 2024 Get Details "To carry out hallmarking of these small items may be expensive affair for jeweller and consumer as well. Further hallmarking agency may not be able to handle so much volume of small silver items/jewellery," IBJA's national secretary Surendra Mehta wrote in the letter dated July 18. At present, there are 1622 hallmarking and assaying centres in the country. The IBJA letter suggested jewellers can themselves assign a unique code for every piece and put the code in the invoice too. It also said other existing rules and fines for gold hallmarking can also be amended. IBJA in the letter said as silver price has surged in market, it is essential that consumers are not cheated. "We have found that more and more consumers are now opting for silver jewellery and bypassing gold jewellery purchase. However, silver jewellery and artefacts hallmarking are not mandatory in nature and these leaves ample room for consumers to be cheated by jewellers," said the letter. Silver on Friday was trading at Rs 1,14,252 per kg at the retail end. Cheating is rampant in silver jewellery, said Chirag Sheth, principal consultant (South Asia) of Metals Focus, a London-based precious metals consulting firm. "Payal that women wear on their feet is the most sold silver jewellery product in India. They control 50% of the silver jewellery market that stood at 2,700 tonnes in 2024. It is well known in the industry circles that many a time jewellers use silver alloys in this product, which customers are unable to find out. So hallmarking is definitely required for silver items. Also, the demand for silver jewellery is increasing among the young crowd because of the affordability of the product and they are asking for hallmarking." Sheth said silver jewellery consumption has grown three-fold from 900 tonnes in 2010 to 2,700 tonne in 2024. India depends on imported silver to meet its domestic demand.
Time of India
18-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Government introduces hallmarking for 9 karat gold
Live Events (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel The government on Friday notified hallmarking of nine karat gold jewellery which the industry said will help to revive demand for light weight gold jewellery when high price of gold is keeping consumers away from the yellow notification was made by the ministry of consumer affairs which till now had specified hallmark standards for gold of 24, 23, 22, 20, 18 and 14 karats. This comes at a time when gold sales by volume fell by 60% in June, the steepest fall since Covid.'We had been urging the government to introduce hallmarking of 9 karat gold for over a year. The government's decision will spur movement of gold in the rural areas where the budget for gold jewellery purchase is much lower than urban," said Surendra Mehta, national secretary of the India Bullion & Jewellers Association (IBJA). He said even in urban areas, younger consumers will now buy gold price of 9 karat of gold is estimated to be Rs 37,000 per 10 gm, which is much lower than Friday's 24 karat gold rate of Rs 97,828 per 10 gm. With a 3% goods and services tax, 9 karat gold costs Rs 38,110 per 10 gm at the retail end while it crosses Rs 1 lakh per 10 gm for higher jewellery industry is particularly happy since the announcement came ahead of the crucial festive season when gold sales is expected to increase. Demand typically increases from Rakshabandhan in August and continues till Diwali, followed by the winter wedding season which begins from annually consumes 800-850 tonnes of the yellow metal. Of this, nearly 60% is consumed by rural India, as per the Russia-Ukraine war, gold price has been on a boil and has rallied by over 25% in the last one year. Due to this, several large jewellers have recently started selling 9 karat jewellery to attract executives said the hallmarking for 9 karat will help jewellers to reduce their working capital requirement which had shot up due to price surge. 'Many gold jewellery units have started shifting from manufacturing high karatage jewellery to 14 karat and 9 karat jewellery. The hallmarking for 9 karat jewellery will further boost this shift,' said a senior gold trade Sen, managing director & CEO of jewellery chain Senco Gold , said modern designs come out smartly in 9 karat gold allowing for design innovation. "Hallmarking will give confidence to customers. It will also boost exports of gold jewellery from the country,' he said BIS will take at least one month to put in place all the formalities at the hallmarking centres spread across the country for 9 karat gold hallmarking
News18
17-07-2025
- Business
- News18
Silver Soars 32% In 2025: ETFs See Record Inflows Amid 13-Year High, Time To Buy?
Silver surged 32% in 2025, hitting $38 per ounce due to industrial demand, supply deficits, and investor interest. Silver ETFs demand surge in recent times. Silver ETFs: Silver has turned out to be one of 2025's most exciting stories in the commodities space, jumping over 32% this year and crossing $38 per ounce—levels not seen since 2011. Behind this rally is a powerful mix of industrial demand, tightening global supply, and investor appetite, which is also driving a surge in silver-focused Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs). Indian retail investors are increasingly joining this global wave through simplified access on platforms. 'This isn't just a commodity cycle—it's a structural shift," says Subho Moulik, CEO & Founder of Appreciate. 'Over 50% of silver demand now comes from solar panels and electronics. Pair that with five consecutive years of supply deficits, and you get sustainable price momentum. Silver is uniquely placed as both an industrial metal and a safe-haven asset, making it a rare dual-purpose investment." US-listed silver ETFs like SLV and SIVR have rallied 28% YTD, while silver mining ETFs such as SIL and SILJ have jumped over 50%. Indian investors can now access these global instruments directly, with minimal barriers. He adds, 'In INR terms, silver has strong support around Rs 1,09,450. If global momentum continues, Rs 1,13,000 isn't far." Analysts believe silver's role in clean energy—especially solar installations, EVs, and 5G—will only grow. With that, silver is increasingly moving from being a tactical trade to a strategic portfolio allocation, especially through ETFs that offer direct, cost-effective exposure. Aksha Kamboj, VP at India Bullion & Jewellers Association (IBJA) and Executive Chairperson of Aspect Global Ventures, echoes the view. 'Silver has reached a milestone today, breaching Rs 1,12,000 per kg. The record points to increasing demand from the industry and investors. The Rs 1.12 lakh benchmark is not just a number—it reflects silver's growing appeal in a tech-driven, sustainable economy," she says. 'Long-term investors can consider staggered entries or SIPs in silver ETFs." view comments First Published: Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Time of India
15-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Buyers keep hands off gold
Gold sales in June dropped 60% from a year earlier to 35 tonnes, the steepest post-Covid fall in volume, as high and volatile prices kept buyers away, the India Bullion & Jewellers Association (IBJA) said. In July too, gold price is showing volatility and there has been no drop in prices till date. On Monday, the price went up by ₹600 per 10 gm to cross the ₹98,000 mark. At the retail level, consumers will have to shell out ₹1,00,997 per 10 gm, including GST of 3%. 'We do not see any immediate recovery in demand with many gold jewellery manufacturing units across the country cutting down their production of gold jewellery by almost half,' IBJA national secretary Surendra Mehta told ET. 'Small players are affected. It is a tough time for the gold trade. Despite offering freebies and discounts, volume demand is not going up.' Gold trade analysts said internationally gold prices continued their upward trend, approaching $3,400 per ounce following renewed trade tensions sparked by US President Donald Trump's threat of additional tariffs on the European Union and Mexico. While Trump has allowed room for negotiations until August 1, the potential for a rapid escalation has kept risk assets under pressure, prompting investors to seek safety in haven assets like gold. Jewellers are actively pushing 14-karat gold jewellery to keep their business growing in the midst of the price surge. Because of the lower price points compared with 22-karat gold traditionally used for making jewellery, 14 karat is becoming a more practical option for jewellery buyers. 'Fourteen-karat gold is gaining traction in India, particularly among the younger demographic, due to its durability and affordability,' said Rajesh Rokde, chairman of the All India Gem & Jewellery Domestic Council. 'I believe this trend will continue to grow, driven by the increasing demand for lightweight jewellery pieces that offer elegance without breaking the bank.' IBJA's Mehta said the association had held several rounds of talks with the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) to allow a hallmarking facility for 9-karat gold. 'We have been informed by the BIS that they have worked out the hallmarking model for 9-karat jewellery. We are expecting clearance from the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution shortly for hallmarking.' Currently, hallmarking is available on 24-, 22-, 18- and 14-karat gold jewellery.
