Geared up for gold rush

CHENNAI: The recent surge in gold prices to record highs, which has gotten many jewellers elsewhere in the country worried about the consumer demand on Akshay Tritiya that falls on Saturday, has not dampened the mood among their counterparts in Chennai.

Many of them are looking forward to brisk business on the day, which, according to them, is a welcome relief after the pandemic.

What has also buoyed their mood is the fall in gold prices by Rs 430 to Rs 60,550 per 10 grams, which is likely to retail demand on Akshay Tritiya, noted analysts. In the previous trade, the precious metal had settled at Rs 60,980 per 10 grams.

“Consumers are showing high enthusiasm to buy gold jewels on Akshay Tritiya this year,” said Jayantilal J Challani, president, Jewellers and Diamond Traders’ Association, Madras, pointing out the healthy pre-bookings that jewel shops have recorded much ahead of the special day.

Many jewel shops have lined up new and exotic ranges of ornaments to catch the fancy of discerning buyers, he said. “I am expecting this year to be better than the recent years when the lockdown and other issues due to the pandemic affected us,” Challani added.

Echoing him, P Dhivya, Executive director, Pothys Swarna Mahal, added that other than its value as ornaments, customers are also showing a lot of interest in investing in gold. “All shops are trying to entice customers by offering attractive schemes. For instance, we are offering discounts up to Rs 1,000 per sovereign,” Dhivya said.

Jewellers have also paid special attention to arrange new designs ahead of the auspicious day so that they are prepared to make it a special Akshay Tritiya for not just the customers but for them as well.

All about gold

The three main varieties of retail gold are 916 gold, Hallmark gold and KDM. The first one, 916, is the same as 22 carats. It is used to denote the purity of gold in the final product.

Hallmark is the certification awarded by the Bureau of Indian Standards to ensure quality. KDM is an alloy of gold and cadmium that was purer than the traditional gold and copper alloy.

However, it was banned due to its impact on health. But the industry still uses it to denote jewellery that retains the purity of gold (hence its value) while reselling.

Around 187,200 tonnes of gold have been mined since the beginning of civilisation. But the metal is so dense that if all gold that has ever been mined is made into one cube, it would only be a 22 metres cube!

More than 90% of gold was mined since the ‘California gold rush’ that began in 1849

China and India are among the countries that have the highest demand for gold, followed by the US and Turkey.