Even as gold prices go beyond the reach of the commoners, experts said the yellow metal remains a good investment with potential to move higher in the future.
In the session Precious Metals: Beyond Aam Aadmi’s Reach, experts concurred that they do not see any immediate relief in the volatility of gold prices unless global insecurities stabilise. But households should find a way to monetise the gold that they hold, especially against the background of rising wealth driven by higher gold prices.
According to research by Morgan Stanley, Indian households hold about 34,600 tonne of gold with them and a large chunk of it is with rural India. Gold has had a very sharp run over the last couple of years. In one year alone, it was up by 84 per cent. In 1964, 10 grams of 24 karat gold was priced at ₹63. But now, 10 grams of 24 karat gold will cost ₹1,65,000. And 22 karat gold is available at about ₹1,45,000. Likewise, 1 gram of gold costs ₹14,000 to ₹15,000.
“Gold is not a cash flow generating asset to start with. The recent rally is driven by the changing economic world order. Central banks have played a key role in ramping up their gold reserves, led by the wave of de-dollarisation. I don’t see that changing anytime soon,” said Tarun Kanwar, Director Navrattan Jewellers, Delhi, while replying to the question on whether the current rally in gold will continue.
This found an echo in the subsequent assertions of two others speakers — Kavita Chacko, Research Head, India, World Gold Council, and Jateen Trivedi, Vice-President, Commodity and Currency Research, LKP Securities.
However, Jateen Trivedi sees an opportunity in the disruptive gold market. “The volatility is definitely going to be there, but that volatility will give us an opportunity to enter because gold is not in a one-way street,” he remarked.
With moderator Lokeshwarri SK, Data Editor, the hindu businessline, the three speakers navigated a complex array of issues confronting the precious metal industry, as well as the struggle arising from market dynamics. The rural-urban divide on consumption pattern, and youngsters’ liking for light weight-and-ready to wear jewellery were part of the threadbare discussion.
Answering a question on whether gold consumption has come down in India due to price increase, the experts noted that though the volume has taken a hit, the value has been compensated largely due to the increase in the price of gold. But the fact that precious metals are finding different investment avenues — Sovereign Gold Bonds (SGBs) for interest and safety, gold ETFs/funds for liquidity, digital gold for convenience and jewellery savings schemes for physical acquisition — is increasing the investment demand for gold, thereby keeping demand steady.
“So what is interesting is that gold demand has been very resilient. That said, there is a slight shift in the product mix. Jewellery demand in terms of volume has come down. And at the same time, investment demand in physical or gold-backed financial products has seen an increase,” said Chacko. “In 2025, jewellery demand for India was 420 tonnes. It was a 12 per cent increase in value. Investment demand for bars and coins was 280 tonnes, which was a 17 per cent increase year-on-year. Demand for ETFs was around 27 tonnes last year.”
recycled gold
Kanwar had an interesting observation about recycled gold finding its way into the market. “Its actually a good thing because it brings down the burden on our imports a little lower. Our government has been trying to monetise the gold that households have been sitting on and bring it back into circulation. Recycling is almost 30 per cent to 40 per cent of our total sales,” the jeweller pointed out.
But before the experts could offer their views, Lakhpati Didi from Tripura, Aruna Debbarma, who was invited as a guest for another session, candidly stated that possessing gold was still a dream for women of her background. The suggestion from the expert to conclude was that people can think of having 15 per cent to 20 per cent gold investment in their overall portfolio, given that increased price of gold has correspondingly lead to increase in wealth of precious metal holders as well.
Published on February 27, 2026
