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To: lorne who wrote (24282)	12/14/1998 4:01:00 PM
From: lorne	Respond to of 116998

Dubai ''bullionaires'' sink into sombre mood 06:32 a.m. Dec 13, 1998 Eastern By Youssef Kassem DUBAI, Dec 13 (Reuters) - Dubai bullion traders said on Sunday their business has sunk beyond salvage, but the emirates' jewellers said their business was very much afloat thanks to rich Gulf Arab buyers. ''The bullion market is absolutely dull...The bullionaires, both bankers and traders have realised that the business has declined to a point of no return,'' a Dubai trader said. ''What remained of the business is limited re-exports of bars, but this is not bullion trading. We do not see any ten-tola (TT) re-exports,'' he said. Dubai -- a commercial centre in the oil-rich Gulf -- has been hard hit by changes in India's gold trade regulations. India, the world's largest gold consumer, has allowed several banks and agencies to import gold directly from source rather than through Dubai. Last year, Dubai was the world's top gold re-export centre, importing 660 tonnes. About 80 percent of that was re-exported to India. Gold imports to the Gulf Arab emirate dropped sharply in October to 17.66 tonnes, down 68 percent from the previous year. In September, Dubai gold imports year-on-year were 57 percent lower at 19.33 tonnes. ''We do not see light at the end of the tunnel. Recovery would take India revoking its gold trade regulations...This thought is far-fetched,'' another trader said. But gold jewellers in Dubai's downtown souk said business has never been better. ''The market has picked up by about 25 percent thanks to aggressive rich buyers from neighbouring Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab states,'' one Dubai jeweller said. He said the boom in Dubai's gold souk, buoyed by the start of the tourist season and two upcoming Moslem feasts (eid al-Fitr and eid al-Adha) in January and March, was expected to last for at least six months. Another jeweller attributed the boom also to an increase in Indian demand for gold jewellery. Tourists, mainly from Europe and the former Soviet Union, are frequent visitors to Dubai, especially in winter. ''Importing gold jewellery to India requires a special licence that banks do not have,'' the jeweller said. He said non-resident Indians, who are allowed by law to bring into the country 10 kgs of gold each every six months, were active buyers on Dubai's market. The price of Dubai's TT bar was quoted on Sunday at 4,026 dirhams ($1,097 ). A TT bar is 3.746 ounces of 24-carat gold. On the international market, spot gold was last quoted at $291.45/291.95 an ounce. ((Gulf newsroom, +971 4 607 1222, fax +971 4 626982, dubai.newsroom+reuters.com))