Indian jewellers resume mild buying post budget
Physical gold demand in India ticked up this week, as jewellers resumed purchases after staying away for a couple of weeks hoping for an import duty cut in the government budget amid the wedding season.
"Jewellers were not buying for few weeks anticipating government will cut import duty in the budget. As there wasn't any change in the duty structure, they have started buying small quantity," said Harshad Ajmera, a gold wholesaler in Kolkata.
India did not slash import duty on gold in its annual budget presented on Feb. 1, but raised the import duty on silver.
Bullion industry was seeking a reduction in the duty as gold refiners have nearly stopped imports of gold dore, a semi-pure alloy, as grey market operators offer hefty discounts to market rates and cut into their slender margins.
But retail demand was still muted as consumers were struggling to digest record high prices, said a Mumbai-based dealer with a private bullion importing bank.
