Dhanteras demand for gold unchanged from last year

Demand for gold and silver coins and jewellery during Dhanteras on Tuesday matched that of the previous year, said Suresh Jain, who took over as president of the Indian Bullion & Jewellers Association (IBJA) from Mohit Kamboj on Wednesday.

“Feedback trickling in from jewellers and bullion dealers across the country suggests that sale of coins and jewellery was more or less in line with Dhanteras 2013,” said Jain.

Some of marquee branded jewellers such as Tanishq and Senco earlier said they expected consumer demand during Dhanteras to be marginally better than last year, underscoring the liquidity crunch among consumers who have been hit by two years of low economic growth and high inflation.

Gold in the grey market on Thursday traded down Rs 156 to Rs 27,600 per 10 gm in the afternoon. Special muhurat trading will take place on commodity such as MCX between 6 pm and 8:30 pm today on the occasion of Diwali and the new year. Aside from this session, the markets will remain shut until Monday.