Says India should aim for more jewellery exports
India continues to be a major consumer of gold, often importing around 600 to 900 tonnes per annum, which is roughly 25 per cent of the global annual production of bullion
New Delhi: World Gold Council has suggested that India should aim at becoming ‘jeweller to the world;’ by increasing gold jewellery exports to $40 billion (five-fold) from current $8 billion. In its Vision 2020 document for the next five years unveiled earlier this week, the council said, “Gold should be put to work for the economy, creating jobs, developing skills, generating exports and revenues — an essential part of the financial economic and social structure of the country.”
It said that stocks of gold in India currently stand at over 22,000 tonnes held by individual households and temples.“India’s love affair with gold is timeless, spanning centuries and millennia. It is much more than just a precious metal. It is part of the fabric of Indian culture and an inseparable part of our belief system. For most Indians, gold is sacred; an embodiment of divinity and a symbol of purity, prosperity and fortune that can adorn the body and celebrate life,” said the council.
The vision envisages doubling the employment in the industry by creating five million new jobs across the gold value chain — manufacturing, retailing, assaying and recycling.
“Around 40 per cent of gold demand should be met through domestic stocks and 60 per cent from imports and mining,” the World Gold Coucil added.“There should be a big and meaningful thrust to enhancing gold deposit schemes, extend duty benefit and import entitlement for domestic gold deposits,” it said.
Meanwhile, Indian household, which has total holding of around 25,000 tonnes of gold, needs more gold refineries for monetising and attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) in the sector, said MMTC-PAMP managing director Rajesh Khosla at the IBJA seminar.
( Source : dc correspondent )
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