There is an amazing craze for gold among Indians. A glimpse of this can be found in the figures of last November. Gold imports in the country quadrupled to a record high of US $ 14.86 billion in November due to festivals and weddings. Gold import in November 2023 was $3.44 billion. According to PTI news, this information has been received from the Commerce Ministry data released on Monday. According to this, imports increased by 49 percent to $ 49 billion during April-November in the current financial year, whereas it was $ 32.93 billion in the same period of the last financial year.
Gold one of the best performing assets
According to the news, according to the ministry, gold is one of the best performing assets in 2024 (till November) with around 25 per cent average annual return. Higher imports indicate stronger investor confidence in the precious metal as a safe-haven asset. Besides, due to uncertainties around the world, purchase of gold for asset diversification, increasing demand from banks and reduction in customs duty have also increased the shine of this precious metal.
Gold prices so far this year
In the national capital Delhi, gold prices have increased by 23 percent so far this year to Rs 78,350 per 10 grams. In the budget, the government had reduced the duty on gold import from 15 percent to six percent. India’s gold imports increased by 30 percent to $45.54 billion in 2023-24. According to statistics, Switzerland is the largest source of gold imports, accounting for about 40 percent. This is followed by the United Arab Emirates (more than 16 percent) and South Africa (about 10 percent).
The share of this precious metal in the country’s total imports is more than five percent. The surge in gold imports pushed the country’s trade deficit (the difference between imports and exports) to a record US$37.84 billion in November.
