2. Do Soaring Price and Mounting Demand in Indian ...
into account. However, the weakness of the latter argument was shown up by citing the instance of the
same Diwali festival of 2007 when the price registered a rise and surged above $800 per oz. mark and
the demand for gold jewellery decreased. The very high price is alleged to have dampened the demand
for gold, especially in the jewellery sector. Experts, however, pointed to real estate and the Bombay
Stock Exchange as better investment havens for Indians in October 2007 to switch their funds to â
away from gold bullion. However, back in 2005, as the gold prices went up demand also went up,
making the analysts comment that the demand curve for gold in India is âinvertedâ.6 The higher the gold
price rises in rupee terms, the stronger becomes the conviction of Indians that gold is the best means of
preserving and enhancing oneâs wealth. This conviction started manifesting itself again towards the last
quarter of 2008 when the US-originated worldwide recession drove investors to park their funds in the
safe haven of gold, thus keeping the investment demand for gold high. But the jewellery demand for
gold saw huge dip in India due to the price increase. Indiaâs demand for gold is met through imports and
recent gold import figures highlight the demand destruction that has taken place. Imports of gold are
reported to have fallen by 83% in December 2008 and by 91% in January 2009.7 India is reported to
have imported zero gold in February 2009; imports so far during March 2009 is also zero.
The relationship between gold price and Indian gold demand seems to be negative during some
years and positive in some other years (Exhibit I).
Exhibit I
Indian Gold Demand (tonnes) and Price (INR)
900 25,000
800
20,000
700
600
15,000
500
400 10,000
300
200 5,000
100
1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 0
0
Tonnes LHS Price (INR) RHS
Source: âThe Role of Gold in Indiaâ, http://www.gold.org/assets/file/rs_archive/the_role_of_gold_in_india.pdf, September
2006, page 2
6
Hamilton Adam, âGlobal Gold Highsâ, http://www.zealllc.com/2005/glogold.htm, October 14th 2005
7
Mehra Chand, âIs investing in gold risky?â, http://www.rediff.com/cms/print.jsp?docpath=//money/2009/mar/16guest-is-investing-in-
gold-risky.htm, March 16th 2009
2
3. Do Soaring Price and Mounting Demand in Indian ...
The price of gold and the quantity demanded of gold in India for the above time series when
plotted against each other in a tabular form, give rise to a straightforward demand schedule (Exhibit
II). The graphical translation of it gives rise to demand curve. While the periods 1992â1993, 1996â
1999 and 2000â2003 show up the negative relationship between price of gold and the quantity
supplied of it, the periods 1991â1992, 1993â1996 and 2003â2005 reveal a positive relationship.
Exhibit II
Demand Schedule of Gold (1999â2005)
Year Price of Gold (INR) Quantity of Gold Demanded (Tonnes)
1991 8,518 271
1992 9,629 371
1993 11,481 314
1994 12,222 428
1995 12,962 514
1996 13,333 556
1997 12,222 771
1998 12,000 871
1999 12,222 813
2000 12,592 813
2001 13,703 800
2002 15,925 628
2003 17,777 600
2004 19,259 685
2005 20,370 813
Compiled by the authors from âThe Role of Gold in Indiaâ, http://www.gold.org/assets/file/rs_archive/
the_role_of_gold_in_india.pdf, September 2006, page 2
The apparent positive relationship between price of gold and its demand is often due to the
presence of the non-price factors (Exhibit III). In 2004, it was reported that, âIndians are enjoying a
rapid acceleration in income growth, which is supporting discretionary spending on consumer goods,
including gold.â8 The demand for gold increased during that time even in the face of rising gold price
because as more and more workers moved from low income to middle and high-income groups, their
demand for gold also increased. A World Gold Council study in 2006 conducted across six key gold
markets, including India, revealed that, âgold has become a more relevant and desirable product to a
greater number of womenâ9, thanks to increasing economic independence of women in developing
countries.
8
âThe Role of Gold in Indiaâ, op.cit., page 5
9
âThe Role of Gold in Indiaâ, op.cit., page 5
3
4. Do Soaring Price and Mounting Demand in Indian ...
Exhibit III
Non-price Determinants of Demand
1. Income of the customer
2. Price of related goods
3. Consumersâ taste and preference
4. Population
5. Expected future prices of the good.
Prepared by the authors
In order to disintegrate the various factors influencing the quantity demanded, the economists
have employed the technique of showing the price factor alone and its influence on quantity demanded
by means of a demand curve. The influence of non-price factors such as income on the quantity
demanded is shown by a shift of the whole demand curve itself. Besides income, other non-price
factors include prices of related goods, size of the population, consumer tastes and preferences,
expectations about future conditions, etc.
In February 2009, it was reported that platinum was nearly half the price it was in 2008. When the
gold prices were steeply climbing and the price of platinum was falling during the first 2 months of
2009, Indians started substituting platinum for gold due to near parity of prices between gold and
platinum. Vijay Jain, chief executive of leading jewellery chain Orra, opines, âthere is a new-found
love for platinum among Indian buyers because the precious metal has lost around 30% of its value in
comparison to goldâ.10 He further says, âA 10-gm platinum ring is now priced around INR 22,000 as
against INR 35,000 a year-ago.â11 The high gold price accompanied with declining platinum price
made Indians dump gold and embrace platinum as reflected by the increase in the market share of
platinum from previous 15%â40% as on January 2009.12 The size of the population in India being so
large, demand for gold in India also sums up to a huge quantity. Rising rate of population growth calls
for increasing demand for gold. Tastes and preferences represent a variety of cultural, religious and
historical influences. Indiaâs demand for gold has its roots in cultural and religious traditions. In India,
gold is seen as a symbol of status and it also plays a major role in a girlâs wedding. Festivals like
Diwali and Akshaya Tritiya13 are regarded as auspicious occasions to buy gold. Thus, demand for
gold is associated with cultural and religious beliefs in India. Another factor that affects the demand
for a good is the expectations about future. The continued expectation about rising trend in gold prices
has swayed the investors into purchasing more of gold even if its price is on the rise. In February
10
âIndian buyers dump gold, embrace platinumâ, http://www.commodityonline.com/news/Indian-buyers-dump-gold-embrace-platinum-
15342-3-1.html, February 19th 2009
11
Ibid.
12
âPlatinum-Gold price differential almost zeroâ, http://www.commodityonline.com/news/Platinum-Gold-price-differential-almost-zero-
15558-3-1.html, February 27th 2009
13
Akshaya Tritiya is an Indian festival, celebrated in the month of April or May. Buying and wearing gold is considered auspicious on
that day.
4
5. Do Soaring Price and Mounting Demand in Indian ...
2009, as gold crossed INR 15,000 mark, investors increased their demand for gold, as they expected
the gold prices to go up to INR 20,000. The uncertain economic conditions resulting from the global
recession in 2008 has also made investors switch their funds from distressed financial assets to ever-
alluring gold. This increased investment demand for gold has sent the gold prices soaring. And the
higher the gold price, the higher will be the investment demand for gold since it creates stronger
expectations of continuing optimistic trend, especially when business scenario all around is pessimistic.
But some analysts counter argue that the worldâs demand for gold being no more money based but
majorly jewellery based, high gold price will eventually lead to destruction of jewellery demand and
overall gold demand.14 Seventy Five percent of the worldâs demand for gold is for making jewellery
while nowhere in the world the monetary system is based on gold.
The simultaneous exertion of various forces on the quantity demanded of gold often masks the
lone influence of the price of gold. But a disaggregated careful analysis would reveal the actual
relationship between price and quantity demanded of a good. Whether this relationship is positive or
inverse depends upon the combined strength of the substitution effect and income effect of the price
change of gold.
14
âIs investing in gold risky?â, op.cit.
5