Demand for precious metals jumps 40% YoY ahead of Dhanteras

Demand for precious metals jumped by 40% year-on-year (YoY) ahead of the Dhanteras with gold contributing to 70% of the overall demand during this festive season, reports the latest Justdial Consumer Report.

Demand for precious metals in Tier-II cities remained high vis-à-vis Tier-I with Tier-II cities witnessing a 44% jump. Searches in Tier-I cities for precious metals rose by 34%. With prices softening, gold remained the most sought-after precious metal and saw a 34% (YoY) jump in demand, silver by 140%, platinum by 82%, while that for diamond remained stable on Justdial.

Last year during Dhanteras, demand for gold was 3X of silver and this year it has jumped to 4X. The rise in demand is expected to spread the cheer for retailers across the country ahead of Diwali.

Commenting on the consumer trends, Mr. Prasun Kumar, chief marketing officer, Justdial, said: “The rise in demand for gold comes on the back of softening prices. Demand in Tier-I cities went up by 28% and in Tier-II by 37%. The significant rise in demand for gold in Tier-II cities has been augmented by increasing disposable income and growing aspiration. Demand for silver has also been growing steadily witnessing a 2.4X growth across the country. We expect this demand to translate into festive cheer for the retailers.”

Among Tier-I cities, demand for gold jewellery was dominated by the four cities of Mumbai, Hyderabad, Delhi, and Bengaluru. Delhi topped the demand for gold coins contributing to almost 41% of the searches and Mumbai for gold bars with 34% of the demand.

Coimbatore led the demand among Tier-II cities for gold jewellery followed by Chandigarh and Lucknow. For gold bars, Jaipur topped the demand followed by Coimbatore and Lucknow. Jaipur also led the demand for gold coins in Tier-II cities with Coimbatore and Lucknow in second and third place, respectively.

For silver, jewellery remained the most sought-after items contributing to 27% of the demand. Among Tier-I cities, Hyderabad topped the demand for silver jewellery followed by Bengaluru and Delhi. Silver coins remained popular in Delhi as the National Capital contributed to 50% of the demand and Bengaluru led the search for silver decorative items followed by Mumbai and Delhi.

Among Tier-II cities, demand for silver jewellery went up by 38%, silver coins by 46%, and dinner items by 41%. Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, and Rajkot saw maximum demand for silver jewellery that saw a 59% (YoY) rise in popularity. Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam also led the demand for silver dinner sets while silver coins were popular in Lucknow, Udaipur, and Jaipur.

Mumbai, Delhi, and Hyderabad saw maximum demand for diamond jewellery among Tier-I cities while Jaipur, Coimbatore, and Indore led the demand among Tier-II cities. For platinum jewellery, Mumbai, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru led the demand among Tier-I cities and Surat, Coimbatore, and Jaipur among Tier-II.