Ease of doing business for MSMEs: Gold and silver jewellery sales have shot up by around 36 per cent this Karwa Chauth compared to last year, after two years of business slump due to Covid, said traders’ body Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) and All India Jewellers and Goldsmith Federation (AIJGF) on Thursday. In a joint statement, the two representative bodies of traders and retailers said the sale of gold and silver jewellry across the country on Thursday was around Rs 3,000 crore vis-a-vis around Rs 2,200 crore a year ago.

In Delhi, the price of 24-carat gold was Rs 52,000 and Rs 48,000 for 22-carat gold per 10 grams, while silver was Rs 59,000 per kg, the two associations noted. “October and November are considered very auspicious for the traders of gold and silver across the country from the business point of view. After Karwa Chauth, other festivals including Pushya Nakshatra, Dhanteras, Laxmi Pujan, Deepawali, Bhaiya Dooj, Chhath Puja and Tulsi Vivah are also celebrated with much fanfare,” said CAIT’s Secretary General Praveen Khandelwal and AIJGF National President Pankaj Arora. 

Subscribe to Financial Express SME newsletter now: Your weekly dose of news, views, and updates from the world of micro, small, and medium enterprises 

There was also a large stock of lightweight jewellery purchased by the masses while fashion jewellery and traditional gold and silver jewellery also did huge business, the two trade leaders said.

Importantly, the government in June this year had hiked the import duty on gold by 5 per cent to 12.5 per cent from 7.5 per cent which according to credit rating agency Crisil will result in flat revenue growth for gold jewellery retailers this fiscal, compared with the glittering run last fiscal. Consequently, retailers will have to pass on the hike to customers, which will curtail demand and wean away discretionary buyers. 

“After the pandemic-led disruptions abated in the first quarter of last fiscal, pent-up demand and an import duty cut of 5 per cent effected in February 2021 had triggered a sharp rebound in sales, which continued into the first quarter this fiscal,” the agency had said.

Also read: GeM: Public procurement crosses Rs 3 lakh crore; doubles in 12 months