- Title: JORDAN-GOLD PRICE Jordan gold merchants say demand is on the up
- Date: 29th July 2015
- Summary: AMMAN, JORDAN (MONDAY 27 JULY, 2015) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF PEOPLE PASSING BY GOLD STORES GIRLS LOOKING AT GOLD JEWELLERY VARIOUS OF JEWELLERY ON DISPLAY JEWELLER, ABDULLAH HROUB, TALKING IN HIS STORE (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) JEWELLER, ABDULLAH HROUB, SAYING: "The drop in the price of gold, all of the Amman gold jewellers have started working, why? Because when gold goes down, s
- Embargoed: 13th August 2015 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Jordan
- Country: Jordan
- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVA1HEOQKU8WJ617ONU7UMM8JDBJ
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Jordanians are keen to cash in on the fall in the gold price, according to jewellers in Amman's gold market.
The shop windows here are full of bangles, bracelets, and necklaces that sparkle in the sunshine, as shoppers admire the designs.
Jewellers here say people can now buy more for their money, and that's why they've seen a healthy appetite from customers.
"The drop in the price of gold, all of the Amman gold jewellers have started working, why? Because when gold goes down, someone who has 1000 dinars or 500 dinars buys something. When it was 30, 40 or 35 all gold vendors were just looking at themselves. When the gold decreased like now, becomes 22 or 21, 20 and 23 as well, the we have a strong demand,'' said jeweller Abdullah Hroub.
Traditionally Jordanians buy gold as wedding gifts for brides to be, with summer being the peak time for many Jordanians to tie the knot.
''To be honest the ones that want to get married during these days or next summer, might head to buy, out of fear that the price will increase by next summer. But the ones who are getting married in a month or two will definitely start buying. You can't predict how much the price of gold will rise by, it's global,'' said shopper Hamdi Abu Sara.
The price drop is down to demand for the precious metal sliding to its lowest in six years in the second quarter of this year, as buyers from top consumer China poured funds into its now troubled equities market, an industry report showed on Tuesday (July 28).
In Amman, Osama Imseeh, President of the Jordan Jewellers Association said demand has increased for gold jewellery in recent days.
"Since the beginning of 2015, the demand was calm compared to 2014. Only four to five days ago when the gold decreased between $50 and $60, there has been demand for two reasons, demand for investment and the second demand is for marriage as there was no one getting married in Ramadan. But now after Ramadan there are weddings and gifts also expats are here, so just in the past four or five days there's been a demand for gold.''
It isn't only Jordanians who are hoping to invest in gold, at an upmarket jewellery store in Amman, Iraqi shopper Ahmad Agha is also going for gold, using it as a hedge against other kinds of investment products.
''I've come to buy gold because global gold price has fallen and it's also a way of saving for the family, for my daughters, my family. I advise everyone who gets the chance, to benefit from the fall in the gold price and to buy, it's a saving, instead of it being cash,'' he said.
Currently, 24-karat gold is priced at 25 Jordanian dinars ($35) per gramme, 21-karat gold is priced at ($30) JD21.4 per gramme, and 18-karat gold is priced at ($25.5) JD18 per gramme, the association figures showed.
At the beginning of July, 24-karat gold was sold at ($36.5) JD26.7 per gramme, 21-karat gold at ($33.5) JD23.7, and 18-karat gold at ($28) JD20 per gramme, according to recent figures from the association.
Investing in gold is traditionally viewed as a safe commodity to invest in during times of crisis.
Gold steadied on Wednesday (July 29) as the dollar softened, but was still trading around a 5-1/2-year low hit last week as investors awaited the outcome of a Federal Reserve's meeting for cues on the timing of the first U.S. rate rise in nearly a decade.
Policymakers are likely to reaffirm that only consistent signs of a strong U.S. economy and labour market would put them on track to raise interest rates in coming months, analysts said.
For non-interest yielding gold, higher interest rates mean prices could come under pressure.
The metal touched $1,077 last week, its weakest since February 2010, following a selloff on exchanges in New York and Shanghai, when investors cut their exposure on fears of further price declines.
After breaching the $1,100 support level, gold has found it tough to recover and stay above that mark, indicating bearish investors continued to hover in the market. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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