Hyderabad, October 15: With gold prices touching an all-time high, people in the city are making do with token purchases to bring Goddess Lakshmi to their houses for the Dhanteras festival.
“I keep a check on the rate of gold before I go shopping for jewellery since I want to get a good deal and not spend all my savings,” says Deeksha, a PR executive.
On Dhanteras which marks the beginning of Diwali, people buy gold as it is believed to be auspicious and will bring in prosperity to their households.
“It is our tradition to buy gold on this day.
I am aware of high gold prices and will only buy one gram of gold this year for auspicious reasons,” said U Srinivas, a customer at a gold shop.
Most years, on Dhanteras, jewellery stores are flooded with customers and gold sales amount to a maximum. However, with the current gold rate being Rs 1,625 per gram, even the shopkeepers are not very optimistic about a grand Diwali sale this year. According to Sandeep Kulhali, vice-president, Tanishq, people are now avoiding spending on gold, first because of the recession and now because of the high prices.
“The market has been very slow and we don’t expect a lot of customers this year. We are hoping that people will buy more gold on the day of the Dhanteras,” said Rajesh, owner of Ganesh Jewellers.
Rising gold prices and economic slowdown have made most consumers extremely cautious.
Instead of buying gold in bulk or applying for a gold loan, many consumers have trimmed their gold shopping list.
“People are mostly buying rings or small ear studs or chains. They are generally buying within a range of Rs 10,000,” said Kailash, sales executive from Ratnaraj Jewellers.
Some people are going in for exchange of gold. “I am not buying anything new this year. I will exchange some of my old gold jewellery and buy new pieces. This way I get the latest designs on gold too,” said Ruthu.
Still there are some consumers who see gold as the best form of investment in this fickle economy. They are using this time of a festival tradition to invest in gold.
“Pure gold has an excellent resale value.
Instead of buying jewellery, some customers are buying gold coins and biscuits. They are trading it in the Multi Commodity Exchange and making a profit out of it,” said Dr Jana Rama Rao, director of Chandana Brothers.
Karan Jethwani, managing director of Meena Jewellers also agrees that gold coins are more liquid and make for good investments.
In spite of the numerous discount offers and investment opportunies, shopkeepers in the city are not satisfied with the sales.
“We are offering gold at the international market price that is Rs 1,397 per gram instead of the domestic market price. We are trying to offer the price that our customers are willing to pay. However, this too has not lured many people,” feels Karan Jethwani.
So while the yellow metal is decked out in its festive glitter, people are not quite willing to dig deep into their pockets.
–Agencies–