Dubai jewellers hope Diwali will help beat sluggish sales

Dubai’s gold market isn’t shining as brightly as it once used to, but jewellers are hopeful that the upcoming Indian festive season of Diwali and Dhanteras, associated with auspicious occasions to buy gold, will help boost sales.

Dubai-based gold traders who spoke with Emirates 24|7 said the season has been dull despite gold price not being prohibitively high, but they see the market picking up soon, especially in view of the special offers and promotions.

Compared to previous years when the gold coins were in short supply, this year the market seems well-supplied. In addition, the Indian the government has minted 50,000 sovereign coins to be sold during the Dhantares period, available in several countries. Initially, 20,000 coins of 5gm and 30,000 coins of 10gm have been ordered, according to reports from India.

“The gold market has been sluggish for the last two months, after robust sales during July when the gold price came down. Normally October-November to February is a good season for gold sales due to Diwali, Dhantares, New Year and Dubai Shopping Festival coming one after another. This Diwali season, gold sales have been lacklustre in both India and the UAE,” said Abdul Salam, Executive Director, Malabar Gold and Diamonds, which operates more than 100 outlets in the GCC and India.

He added that jewellers are trying to lure customers with special offers and promotions. “This year we are offering Dh5 million worth of gold coins to customers. The sales surge in July must have affected the sales in the last two months, and we believed customers were waiting for Diwali to buy,” he said.

“In India too, the situation is not different. Even though we were expecting good sales compared to last year, the initial trend is not encouraging.”

Jibin Thomas John, Marketing Manager, Joy Alukkas, remains bullish about jewellery sales in the season. “We are ready for Diwali with enough stock of 14 new Diwali jewellery designs for the season in addition to a month-long promotion from October 15 to November 14.”

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