On the day of Diwali, big news has come from the World Gold Council. Presenting the third quarter 2024 gold demand trend report on Wednesday, the World Gold Council (WGC) said that India’s gold demand stood at 248.3 tonnes with an increase of 18 per cent in the July-September quarter this year. Demand for jewelery has improved due to reduction in gold import duty. In the same quarter of last year, the total demand for gold was 210.2 tonnes. According to the report, gold prices are at an all-time high, so investors may have an increased tendency to wait for a fall in prices.
What was the demand last year?
The demand for gold throughout the year is likely to be in the range of 700-750 tonnes, which is slightly less than last year. There is also a possibility of increase in the total demand for gold in view of Dhanteras and weddings. India’s gold demand in 2023 was 761 tonnes. Gold prices in the national capital on Tuesday rose by Rs 300 to Rs 81,400 per 10 grams, an all-time record high, amid heavy Dhanteras demand from jewelers and retailers. In value terms, the demand for gold increased by 53 percent to Rs 1,65,380 crore in the third quarter of this calendar year, whereas it was Rs 1,07,700 crore in the same period of 2023.
Why did demand increase?
WGC Regional Chief Executive Officer (India) Sachin Jain said that India’s gold demand in the third quarter (July-September) of 2024 stood at 248.3 tonnes, an increase of 18 percent on an annual basis. The demand for jewelery improved due to the huge cut in gold import duty in July. This was the strongest third quarter for gold since 2015. Demand increased by 10 percent to 171.6 tonnes compared to 155.7 tonnes in the third quarter of 2023. At the same time, in July-September 2024, global gold demand increased by five percent to 1,313 tonnes, which is the highest in any third quarter. According to the WGC’s gold demand trend report for the third quarter of 2024, global demand was 1,249.6 tonnes in the same period a year ago.
Increase in investment is also the main reason
Citing the report, WGC senior market analyst Lewis Street said that the third quarter (July-September) saw an increase in investment and over-the-counter activity, which increased demand for gold globally and also improved prices. . Although higher gold prices dampened demand in most consumer markets, demand for jewelery and bars and coins increased significantly amid an environment of record-breaking prices driven by import duty cuts in India.
