The price of gold continues to be an issue for shoppers in the UAE as jewellery demand took a steep 20 per cent dent between April to end June from a year ago.
In all, 10.6 tonnes of jewellery featuring the favoured metal was sold in the second quarter against 13.2 tonnes in Q2-2022 as gold prices stuck to well over $1,950 an ounce levels, according to World Gold Council data released today (August 1).
But the 10.6 tonnes does represent an improvement on the 9.7 tonnes sold in the first three months of 2023, when prices were closer to $2,000.
“Not just in the UAE, consumer demand for jewellery across most gold consuming markets – with the exception of China – was down in the second quarter,” said Andrew Naylor, Head of ASEAN Markets and Public Policy at World Gold Council, which recently reopened its office in Dubai.
“Price sensitivity affected consumption, no doubt.” (Naylor adds that the higher Q2-22 demand also stemmed from a rush of buying by residents and tourists after the Covid hangover subsided. ) Meanwhile, in the latest quarter, Saudi demand during the period was steady at best (9.5 tonnes), while shoppers in India kept a good distance from jewellery shops as local prices soared (129 tonnes from an 8 per cent decline). But in Turkey, there was a pick up in demand but more as investments.
