No gold rush, markets dull on Akshay Tritiya
LUCKNOW: Instead of a ‘gold rush’, the city markets witnessed a lukewarm response from buyers on Akshay Tritiya on Wednesday. Many cited cash crunch as the main reason behind the dull demand for gold on the auspicious day.
In Lucknow market, an estimated .29 kg gold was sold during the day which was less than the sales recorded last year on Akshay Tritiya.
The rate for 22 carat gold was Rs 31,000 per 10 grams. The rates in 2017 were Rs 30,490 per 10 grams and nearly 30 kg gold, worth nearly Rs 9 crore was sold in the Lucknow markets.
Vinod Maheshwari, secretary, Lucknow bullion traders association said, “The markets were very dull till late afternoon. Sales picked up only after 4 pm. But they were not up to the expectations all over the city.”
Though traders complained of cash crunch being the reason for dipped sales (as ATMS remained dry all over the state capital), not many transactions were made through cards and cheques.
“Cards were used for some transactions but cheques were not accepted from unknown people. We accepted cheques only from our regular customers,” said Adeesh Kumar Jain, organising secretary of the traders association.
Unlike the previous years, pre bookings were also not done by many customers.
“There was a trend where people would get their jewelleries booked in advance when the gold rates were low. They selected the jewellery and made the purchase on the day of Akshay Tritiya as it is considered auspicious. However, this year, not many bookings were made. This was because the gold prices did not dip in the near past,” said Jain.
As per the response from traders in Alambagh and Aminabad markets, light jewellery was in demand during the day and no major purchases were made.