Hyderabad, April 22: All jewellery outlets in the city will soon sell gold at prices prevailing in Chennai, which is five per cent lower than Hyderabad. However, the difference will not be passed on to the customer. “Wherever you buy, ultimately the customer ends up paying the same amount. But customers don’t know this. This move is aimed at clearing confusion and also to create some kind of trust amongst consumers,” said the Hyderabad Gold merchants’ Association secretary, Mr Praveen.
At present, outlets like Khazana and Joy Alukkas sell gold at Chennai prices whereas Tribhuvandas Bhimji Zaveri sells at Mumbai prices, which are still lower. Though they claim to sell at lower prices, they cover the difference by charging higher wastage (valued addition) charges. For instance, if a gram of pure gold is priced at Rs 2,000. Chennai gold (22 carat) is offered at 93 per cent ( Rs 1,860) and in Hyderabad it is priced at 98 per cent (Rs 1,960).
On Chennai gold, about 15 per cent wastage (value addition) is charged which comes out to be Rs 300 whereas other outlets charge 10 per cent wastage that is Rs 200. Thus customers end up paying Rs 2,160 per gram. Meanwhile, with prices of silver rising like never before, traders are advising customers to exercise caution while investing in silver. In one day, silver went up by Rs 2,000 per kg, closing at Rs 69,000 per kg on Thursday. Traders expect that silver prices would crash heavily if there is correction.
–Agencies