India Gold jewellery exports plunge on weak UAE offtake

New Delhi (Mar 29)  India's Gold jewellery exports dropped more than 24% in January and 47.52% in February mainly due to a 5 per cent import duty levied by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) effective January 1.

UAE, led by Dubai, is a gateway for India's jewellery exports not only to other Arabian nations but also to Europe. Since January 1, however, this routing business has stopped.

The 10% import duty levied on imported Gold used in making jewellery and the latest move of 1% excise duty levy and others such as supply restriction have also adversely affected the Gold jewellery industry. The government had increased the import duty on gold steadily to 10% in 2013 to bring the current account deficit (CAD) under control.

The data compiled by the Gem Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) show Gold jewellery exports at Rs 2,810.60 crore in February, compared to Rs 5,355.47 crore for the corresponding month last year.

In January Gold jewellery exports had plunged to Rs 2,707.58 crore as against Rs 3,566.49 crore in the same month last year.

Source: CommodityOnLine