Despite Auspiciousness Of Akshaya Tritiya, Retail Gold Sales Expected To Fall 10-20% On Festival

India's enjoyed a lot of growth, and Indian farmers have enjoyed a nice boost in their incomes due to rising agricultural commodity prices, but some gold traders are expecting the high price of gold to cut into the volume sold on that gold-buying festival.

Traders and retailers are expecting a fall of 10-20% in volume though value of gold bought is likely to rise, thanks to rise in gold prices....

“This hike in price will affect the demand for gold on the auspicious day. Interestingly, gold price is continuously rising but so is demand. However, the demand is increasing in terms of value of gold bought while volume may shrink,” said Rajkot-based bullion trader Pankaj Lodhiya.

The article notes that, despite the expected fall in volume, traders are still stocking up for the festival.

"Traders and retailers usually start buying gold one month prior to Akha Trij. But this year with such exorbitant prices, everyone is afraid of a fall in sales," said Rajnikant Choksi, director of Ahmedabad Choksi Mahajan Association.

Maybe. We won't know until the sales figures are in. Indian consumers have surprised to the upside, volume-wise, before.