No yardstick for fixing local gold prices

As all official imports of raw materials and finished goods are made on prevailing interbank dollar rates, consumers are forced to pay higher prices for gold and its related products as daily bullion rates are calculated on higher open market exchange rates. More surprisingly, official gold imports have been suspended for the last many years as claimed by bullion traders due to the paucity of dollars. The local yellow metal prices have been rising due to a host of reasons mainly a volatile exchange rate amid falling foreign exchange reserves which triggered renewed buying of gold by investors and businessmen owing to growing fears of the country’s default and a bullish trend on the world market. The All Sindh Saraf Jewellers Association (ASSJA) on Monday, the first trading day of 2023, surprised the market by tossing the one-tola and 10-gram rates to a new all-time high of Rs187,200 and Rs160,494 (a rise of Rs3,300 and Rs2,829) despite no change in the world gold rate which remained steady at $1,824 per ounce.