Spot gold was up 0.32 per cent at $1,820.41 per ounce by 1132 GMT
The 2021 gold import bill easily doubled the $22 billion spent in 2020, and surpassed the previous high, set in 2011, of $53.9 billion, according to an official
Imports made up 86 per cent of India's gold supply between 2016-2020, and inbound shipments continue to grow despite high import duty, as per a report by the World Gold Council (WGC)
Higher imports by the world's second-biggest bullion consumer could support benchmark gold prices
Gold imports in August nearly doubled from a year ago to their highest level in five months on an improvement in demand and as a correction in prices prompted jewellers to ramp up purchases
Gold imports, which have a bearing on the current account deficit, zoomed to 6.91 billion during April-May 2021 due to low base effect in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic
In New Delhi, the price of 22-carat gold is at Rs 47,110 per 10 gm. In Chennai, it increased to Rs 46,160. The rate in Mumbai was Rs 48,310
India's gold imports in May surged more than nine-fold from last year's low base to 12 tonnes, while vegetable oil imports in the month spiked 148% to a record $1.4 billion, a government source
Gold import, which has a bearing on the country's current account deficit, zoomed to $6.3 billion for the month of April due to a surge in domestic demand, according to the Commerce Ministry data.
Gold imports, which have a bearing on the country's current account deficit (CAD), rose by 22.58 per cent to USD 34.6 billion (about Rs 2.54 trillion ) during 2020-21 due to increased domestic demand
Gold futures fell more than 3% following the surprise announcement in the annual budget by Sitharaman
Demand is expected to jump closer to the 690 tons bought in 2019 as the country's economy shows signs of recovery, P R Somasundaram, managing director at the council for India, said
Physical gold price in India is at a discount for the first time in six weeks as a rebound in local prices to a one-month peak squeezed demand, while purchases slowed in other Asian hubs
Silver imports during April-November 2020 too dipped 65.7 per cent to about $752 million
Imports of the yellow metal stood at $17.64 billion in the corresponding period of 2019-20
India's gold imports, which have a bearing on the current account deficit, plunged 81.22% to $2.47 billion during April-July period of 2020-21 due to a notable fall in demand in the wake of Covid-19
Silver imports during April-September 2020 too dipped 63.4 per cent to USD 733.57 million (about Rs 5,543 crore), the data showed
Gold imports in August nearly doubled from a year ago to the highest level in eight months on an improvement in investment demand and as some jewellers restocked after New Delhi eased lockdowns
Overseas purchases rose to 25.5 tonnes in July from 20.4 tonnes a year earlier and were almost double the amount shipped in the previous month
The reason for the demand destruction is a surge in prices and the subsequent lockdown, due to which footfalls at retail stores dropped significantly