Gold price hits record high
Wednesday, 19 May 2010
FE Report
The gold price has hit a record high, over Tk 36,000 per bhori, leaving the local market in the cold as the customers shy away from buying this precious metal due to the sprice spike.
The 22-karat gold price has been raised to Tk 36,100 per bhori. The revised price
of 21-karat gold is Tk 34,367 and 18-karat Tk 30,734.
In the two months the gold prices increased by Tk 2,000 per bhori across the board pushing the metal almost beyond the reach of middle-class customers.
"The market is down by almost 50 per cent on an average, as middle-class cutomers are staying away from the market," Dilip Biswas of Venus Jewellers in the city said.
Though big jewellery shops are recording a good volume of sales at the end of the day, small shops are left almost out of business by the price hike, he said.
"It's totally psychological that customers prefer big and reputed shops in a high market, when it comes to quality," he added.
The reputed shops give quality test certificates to the customers and thus earn their confidence easily, Mr Dilip said.
Subash Chandra Sarkar of Baitul Jewellers said their sales dropped significantly due to the price increase.
"We lost a great deal in the last couple of months, as the main buyers, the middle-class people, are staying away from the market," he said.
General Secretary of Bangladesh Jewellers Association Enamul Haque said it had to increase the prices to keep the local market abreast with the international market.
However, the sluggish market is expected to rebound in October as the wedding season begins in the month, he said.
Though the price hike may force the customers to strike a balance between their purchasing capacity and the requirement, still the overall sales pick up during October to February, he added.
The gold price has hit a record high, over Tk 36,000 per bhori, leaving the local market in the cold as the customers shy away from buying this precious metal due to the sprice spike.
The 22-karat gold price has been raised to Tk 36,100 per bhori. The revised price
of 21-karat gold is Tk 34,367 and 18-karat Tk 30,734.
In the two months the gold prices increased by Tk 2,000 per bhori across the board pushing the metal almost beyond the reach of middle-class customers.
"The market is down by almost 50 per cent on an average, as middle-class cutomers are staying away from the market," Dilip Biswas of Venus Jewellers in the city said.
Though big jewellery shops are recording a good volume of sales at the end of the day, small shops are left almost out of business by the price hike, he said.
"It's totally psychological that customers prefer big and reputed shops in a high market, when it comes to quality," he added.
The reputed shops give quality test certificates to the customers and thus earn their confidence easily, Mr Dilip said.
Subash Chandra Sarkar of Baitul Jewellers said their sales dropped significantly due to the price increase.
"We lost a great deal in the last couple of months, as the main buyers, the middle-class people, are staying away from the market," he said.
General Secretary of Bangladesh Jewellers Association Enamul Haque said it had to increase the prices to keep the local market abreast with the international market.
However, the sluggish market is expected to rebound in October as the wedding season begins in the month, he said.
Though the price hike may force the customers to strike a balance between their purchasing capacity and the requirement, still the overall sales pick up during October to February, he added.