Consumers Snap Up Gold & Silver Jewellery

by GoldCore


Today’s AM fix was USD 1,469.50, EUR 1,118.68 and GBP 944.59 per ounce.
Yesterday’s AM fix was USD 1,454.00, EUR 1,108.74 and GBP 939.09 per ounce.

Cross Currency Table – (Bloomberg)
Gold climbed $20.60 or 1.42% yesterday to $1,472.60/oz and silver finished nearly unchanged -0.08%.
Jewellers across the world are seeing a surge in jewellery purchases because consumers are taking advantage of the price drop and purchasing investment pieces that will grow in value over time.
In the USA with Mother’s Day approaching this weekend, consumers like Whitney Court who would normally buy flowers instead wants to purchase something that won’t wilt: a silver necklace.

Silver in USD, 6 Months – (Bloomberg)
“I’d rather spend a little bit more money and get her something she can keep than something she’s going to throw away in a week,” Court said of her present for her mom on May 12th.
Over 1/3 of Americans plan to purchase jewellery as a Mother’s Day gift, according to a National Retail Federation survey, the highest percentage in the survey’s 9-year history. U.S. jewellery sales have increased from 67.3 billion in 2011 to $71.5 billion in 2012.
In Asia, families often use gold jewellery as part of dowries.  Chinese consumer Fang Yan made the journey to Macau to purchase gold jewellery but discovered all the large chunky bracelets were sold out.
Retail sales of gold across China increased three times in mid April when the price fell, according to the China Gold Association.
 Gold in USD, 6 Months – (Bloomberg)

In the Middle East, from Dubai to Qatar, locals and expats have been buying on the dip.
According to The Telegraph there are rumours that retailers have removed stock from the shelves in order to wait until the value increases.

Since gold bars are in short supply in the UAE investors are purchasing jewellery as a substitute.
Even though cities like Dubai and Qatar are renowned for their vending machines filled with gold bars, one consumer wrote to a Dubai newspaper that they were struggling to find gold.
“When my husband went to the Sharjah Gold Souq, known as Central Souq, the salesmen there said that they don’t have any in stock,” she commented.
“He also told my husband not to waste time, as no one is selling gold, even though they have it in stock. My husband checked in a couple more shops and they all said the same thing.”
Since the drop in value, some jewellery retailers in the Doha gold market have said their business has doubled.
An expat blogger Annabel Kantaria commented, “Someone wrote to another newspaper claiming that all the shops are in it together,” she said. “That’s all I’ve heard. I find it hard to believe they will have run out – it’s far more likely that they are refusing to sell.”
Although these are only rumours price collusion in markets is not a new concept.