NAGPUR: The rush for gold doesn't seem to have lessened even as the yellow metal's price has reached the peak. In what the trade is labelling as an unusual phenomenon, the demand for gold has continued to remain buoyant even though rates per 10 grams have crossed the Rs 11,000 mark.
This is unlike the customers' response last September when the buying spree decreased as the prices touched the Rs 10,000 level. Traders witnessed a dry period for almost a weak as apprehensive consumers waited for the prices to come down.
President of Gems and Jewellery Federation, Ashok Minawala says that the most unexpected change this time is that the consumer has fundamentally accepted that the present rates are still a good rate to buy. "Sales in Maharashtra for January have been around Rs 400 crore, which is 30 per cent more than the average in the same period last year," he added. Apart from retail consumers, there is a general rise in the demand from institutional buyers. Several companies are offering gold coins through promotional schemes, which is also propelling the demand.
At the same time there is enough supply of gold meant for recycling, as consumers are selling their old holdings to book profits on account of the high rates, adds Minawala.
A substantial demand exists in the local market too. Rajesh Rokde, who has a shop at Badkas chowk says, "The buying continues in the local market as the consumers apprehend that the prices may go up in the near future."
Director of the Gems and Jewellery Federation, Nitin Khandelwal, said that the supply for gold for recycling has outmatched the demand for ornaments. With this the traders are facing constrains over availability of raw material too. Khandelwal is a wholesaler based in Akola.
Meanwhile, in smaller centres there are reports of demand coming down due to high prices.
Nilesh Rathi of SMS Bhav, a market information agency, opines that the buying is because of expectation that prices are likely to go up even further.
shishir.arya@timesgroup.com
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