By IANS,
New Delhi : Buyers in India were greeted by a pleasant surprise Friday as prices of gold that had been rising steadily in the past, fell by around Rs.500 per 10 grams on Akshaya Tritiya when people make purchase of the precious metal for auspicious reasons.
Many believe that after Dhanteras, which falls just ahead of Diwali, Akshaya Tritiya is the second most auspicious day to buy gold and it brings then lasting prosperity.
“The response is just overwhelming, we are catering to a huge rush at all our showrooms across the country. The mood is upbeat,” said Balram Garg, managing director and chief executive of the Delhi-based PC Jewellers Group.
“It seems that those who had not even planned have also turned up today looking at the dip in the prices,” Garg, told IANS.
“With such a demand, we expect the business today to rise by 30-40 percent as compared to Akshaya Tritiya last year.”
Gold, which was retailing at Rs.22,300 per 10 grams a day before, fell to Rs.21,800 Friday. Silver, too, slipped to Rs.56,000 per kg compared to Rs.60,000 Thursday.
According to the Multi Commodity Exchange of India, gold spot prices at Ahmedabad were at Rs.21,700 per 10 grams Friday, while silver was at Rs.53,757 per kg.
The fall in gold and silver prices was due to a weakening in the global prices of these precious metals and other commodities.
“I had no plans of buying a gold jewellery but the sudden dip in the prices of the metal made me change my mind,” said Roshani Agarwal, who works as a manager in a private firm in Allahabad.
According to shopkeepers, there was more demand for the daily-wear and lightweight jewellery but people were also buying gold coins as an investment.
“I buy gold basically for investment purpose so I bought a 10-gram gold coin for around Rs.23,000,” said Saurabh Shukla, a chartered accountant from Patna.
However, there are many people who have been buying the precious metal to meet the family customs as well.
“I am buying an ear ring to gift to my daughter-in-law. Though it’s good that the prices have dropped marginally, I would not have been much bothered even if the prices remained intact as buying gold today is a ritual and has to be followed,” said Jayanti Bose, a resident of Kingsway Camp in Delhi.
Apart from gold, people also buy other metals and metal-based items on this auspicious day. “Today is a good day and I am gifting my grandniece a bicycle,” Vasantha Raghunathan a resident of Mylapore, Chennai told IANS.
The jewellery shops in Chennai which usually open at 10 a.m. saw beeline of gold buyers from 7 a.m. According to the jewellers, sales this day alone is expected to increase by 40 percent compared to any normal day.
“Despite being sold at over Rs.2,000 per gram there is demand for gold, the sales are going good. On this day almost 70 percent of our monthly sales will be done,” S. Vijayan owner of Kirtilal Kalidas Jewellers, a leading jewellery shop based at Chennai told IANS.
According to the World Gold Council, sales this Akshaya Tritiya will increase by 15 percent compared to last year.
Local jewellery shops as well as branded jewellery makers across the country are also offering huge discounts to attract customers this festive season.
While PC Jewellers is offering one gold coin with the purchase of diamond jewellery worth Rs.25,000 and half-a-gram of gold with purchase of Rs.40,000 worth jewellery, D’damas is offering free jewellery worth up to 30 percent of the purchase done.
Delhi-based jewellers, Manohar Lal Sarraf and Sons Jewellers, who also have shops in Noida, is offering a 20 percent discount on the making charges. The retail chain charges Rs.300 as making charge for a five gramm gold coin and Rs.2,500 for a 100-gram coin.