Kerala jewellers expect gold sales to go up by 25-30 per cent

Jewellers from the south Indian state of Kerala are expecting gold sales to go up by 25% -30% during the upcoming Onam and marriage season. The Onam festival is spread over a fortnight beginning September 1. They also indicated that lightweight jewellery will be sold more during Onam as consumers will stay away from heavy jewellery due to a spike in the gold price which has touched Rs 40,000 per 10 gm.

Mr Ahammed MP, chairman, Malabar Gold & Diamonds told ET “We have a positive outlook towards the consumer demand during Onam as well as the ongoing wedding season. The consumer sentiment is also bullish on the back of the gold price rise. Hence, we are expecting a 25-30% increase in sale in terms of value during Onam festivity compared to the sale during Onam in 2017. We are not considering the demand during Onam festivity in 2018, as Kerala was devastated by floods in that year before Onam and we witnessed a modest growth of 6% during that time.”

“Given the recent gold price rise, this year, we are rolling out an extensive range of affordable and lightweight jewellery in gold within the price bracket of Rs.10,000-20,000. The idea is to attract budget-centric customers to invest in gold at a time when the gold price is on the higher side. To appeal to all customer segments, we are rolling out design-led creations in gold, diamond and platinum. Affordably-priced, the designs will add to the festivity of Onam,” he added.

Kerala is the top consumer of gold in the country: rural Kerala’s per capita expenditure on gold is Rs 208.55 while for urban Kerala, it is Rs 189.95. The southern state is far ahead of the other six top states — Goa, Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, J&K and Punjab — in gold consumption.