Gold price breaches Rs 40,000-mark, silver soars Rs 1,450 as rupee weakens

Shiv Kumar
Tribune News Service
Mumbai, August 2

Gold prices surged past the Rs 40,000 mark per tola on Monday, almost mirroring the sharp fall of the rupee against the dollar, according to analysts.

The price of ten grammes of gold touched Rs 40,220 per ten grams this morning. At the same time, the Indian currency crossed Rs 72 to the dollar amidst global concerns.

Silver also soared Rs 1,450 to Rs 46,550 per kg on fresh offtake by industrial units and coin makers

“Gold prices are expected to rise in tandem with the fall in the rupee,” Shashank Joshi, an analyst with a city brokerage told this reporter.

Jewellers in Mumbai’s Zaveri Bazaar, the hub of India’s gold trade, are betting on the yellow metal breaching the Rs 41,000 mark for ten grammes by Diwali.

”Demand for gold is expected to rise during the festival and marriage seasons, which begin in September. Traditionally, gold prices rise during this period,” says Ratanlal Choksi, a jeweller from Zaveri Bazaar.

He added that people were selling their old gold stocks to cash in on the rising prices. A spurt on sale of old jewellery, known as scrap gold in trade parlance, happened when prices touched Rs 36,000 per
tola about two months ago.

According to the Bombay Bullion Association, which tracks sales of scrap gold, approximately 100 tonnes of old jewellery are sold in the country every year. Mumbai alone accounts for some 15-20 per cent of
the business.

The World Gold Council, which tracks the gold trade, says consumption of the yellow metal in India had fallen to 760 tonnes in 2018 below the 10-year average of 838 tonnes.