Akshay Tritiya 2022 recovers from pandemic downtime with higher gold imports and jewellery sale

Fingers crossed, as the gem and jewellery industry is showing strong signs of recuperation from pandemic-induced demand damps. This Akshay Tritiya has been promising for jewellers across the country as the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) has claimed that business worth Rs 15000 crore was recorded this year. That is a jump from the pre-pandemic heydays of 2019’s statistic when gold worth Rs 10,000 crore was sold.

The price factor plays a huge role in this tally, as gold was priced at Rs 32,700 per 10 grams three years ago. Now, it is Rs 53,000 per 10 grams. Silver too got a great jump from Rs 38,350 per kg in 2019 to Rs 66,600 per kg. Gold imports have also increased during the similar time frame, as the first quarter of 2021 had 39.3 tonnes of gold bars and coins imported. That import stands at 41.3 tonnes today. A reduction of gold jewellery imports from 126.5 tonnes in 2019 to 92.4 tonnes this year proves that bullion investment is getting a lot of attention.

Somasundaram PR, Regional CEO, India at World Gold Council, attributes this growth in gold demand to sustained marketing. “Sustained aggressive marketing and trade promotions have played a role in increasing in-store visits and leveraging the occasion. Even with gold prices at a high, initial market feedback point to a buoyant Akshaya Tritiya, due, in no small measure, to a heightened interest in gold among consumers following risks posed by inflation and global uncertainties,” he said.

For Vidit Garg, Director, Kundan Group, rising cost of commodities, gold included, and high inflation rates are affecting the sale of gold and silver this Akshaya Tritiya. “It was expected that there would be a robust sale in Gold/Silver Coins and Jewellery this year. On the brighter side, this year, a clear upward trend has been observed in the Digital payments and online buying of coins & jewellery. The online platform of MyGoldKart has been getting a large number of hits, many of which have converted to actual sale. Going by the trend of the market, we expect the sale of Gold/Silver coins to touch a figure of approx twelve thousand and above besides light weight jewellery.”

Tanishq has found success with their gold Kalai collection across showrooms that are following their Gold standards of safety from the ongoing Covid scare. Mr. Arun Narayan, Vice President, Category, Marketing and Retail, Tanishq at Titan Company Limited said, “We have witnessed a very good response from customers who were looking forward to celebrating Akshaya Tritiya after two years. Our newly introduced Gold Coin ATMs also enabled customers to shop quickly and comfortably.”

Ramesh Kalyanaraman, Executive Director – Kalyan Jewellers is enthused by the strong momentum across geographies and product segments in footfall, sales volume and value, even when compared to the pre-pandemic days of 2019. “The higher traction this Akshaya Tritiya could be owing to the lower volatility in gold prices over the past week, further aided by revenge shopping and the festival holiday. While an uptick in sales in the Southern markets were expected, the response from the non-South markets have also been extremely encouraging. Owing to the heatwave, we are expecting more walk-ins during the evening hours, and are confident that the demand momentum will continue to increase.”

For CaratLane, a hike in demand of diamond jewellery this time has coincided with the brand’s motto of promoting collections that can be treasured every day. Mr. Avnish Anand, COO & Co-Founder, CaratLane, said, “This Akshay Tritiya, consumers seem to be leaning towards buying diamond jewellery, moving from an auspicious gold buying occasion to becoming a reason to celebrate with jewellery.Our 40k+ categories have received a lot of traction this year owing to expansion of that price catalogue and more investment in inventory.”

This year witnesses an upward trend in familial gifting. The Eid celebration has also positively impacted sales for Akshay Tritiya. Jewellers are now looking forward to a good wedding season as there is already an uprise in the purchase of engagement rings across the country.

RJ Exclusive