Silver, the poor man's gold, beats precious metal to set a record in festive season
For the first time in the history of the Indian jewellery market, silver sales surpassed gold during this Dhanteras season. High gold prices have dampened consumer demand, leading shoppers to turn to silver instead.
"Silver sales have shot up 30-35% this year despite prices being 40% higher than last Dhanteras," Surendra Mehta, national secretary at Indian Bullion & Jewellers Association (IBJA), told ToI. "We are collating data for silver because this is the first time we are seeing such a huge demand," he added.
The surge in silver demand is also driven by its expected high industrial demand, mainly from electric vehicle manufacturers. "People have now begun to understand that there is a real opportunity in investing in silver," Mehta said.
While silver demand increased by 30-35%, gold sales fell by 15% to around 35-36 tonnes compared to 42 tonnes last festive season. However, due to the 30% rise in the average price of gold, the total value of gold sales reached nearly Rs 28,000 crore, up from about Rs 24,000-25,000 crore last year.
economictimes.indiatimes.com |
