Gold sales drop by over 50pc
Thursday, 2 August 2007
FE Report
Sales of gold dropped more than 50 per cent in the past year due to fall in savings and tight income of the people, and rise in inflation, market sources said.
Bangladesh Jewellery Manufacturers and Exporters Association sources said the sales of gold and jewellery items were recorded at around 12 tonnes last year against about 25 tonnes of the previous year.
The sales started sliding since the middle of 2004 when prices of gold surged significantly in the world market, they said.
Sources said the normal annual size of the local market for gold was around Tk 3.0 billion up to the middle of 2006, but it has been squeezed to around Tk 1.50 billion currently.
Market sources said many people used to buy gold and gold ornaments as part of hedge purchase to use the item as a medium of savings in the backdrop of rapid rise in inflation rate. They have turned sceptical fearing the edge of accountability and provision of disclosure of source. Currently, most people are showing interest in buying gold ornaments only in unavoidable circumstances.
A salesperson at New Market on condition of anonymity said: "We have to close the shop for many days without getting any customer."
The continuation of the on-going market situation will leave most of the 1.5 million engaged in the sector unemployed, jewellery association sources said.
They said the prices of 22-caret gold stood at Tk 19,933 per 11.664 gram and Tk 19,035 for 21-caret per 11.664 gram Tuesday.
The prices of gold varied between Tk 8,000 and Tk 9,000 in 2003, they added.
Sales of gold dropped more than 50 per cent in the past year due to fall in savings and tight income of the people, and rise in inflation, market sources said.
Bangladesh Jewellery Manufacturers and Exporters Association sources said the sales of gold and jewellery items were recorded at around 12 tonnes last year against about 25 tonnes of the previous year.
The sales started sliding since the middle of 2004 when prices of gold surged significantly in the world market, they said.
Sources said the normal annual size of the local market for gold was around Tk 3.0 billion up to the middle of 2006, but it has been squeezed to around Tk 1.50 billion currently.
Market sources said many people used to buy gold and gold ornaments as part of hedge purchase to use the item as a medium of savings in the backdrop of rapid rise in inflation rate. They have turned sceptical fearing the edge of accountability and provision of disclosure of source. Currently, most people are showing interest in buying gold ornaments only in unavoidable circumstances.
A salesperson at New Market on condition of anonymity said: "We have to close the shop for many days without getting any customer."
The continuation of the on-going market situation will leave most of the 1.5 million engaged in the sector unemployed, jewellery association sources said.
They said the prices of 22-caret gold stood at Tk 19,933 per 11.664 gram and Tk 19,035 for 21-caret per 11.664 gram Tuesday.
The prices of gold varied between Tk 8,000 and Tk 9,000 in 2003, they added.