New Delhi: The global gold demand during third quarter of this year declined marginally by 2 per cent to 929 tonne mainly due to reduced appetite towards jewellery, according to the World Gold Council.
As per the latest Gold Demand Trends report from WGC, the overall demand during the corresponding quarter of last year stood at 952.8 tonne.
The overall jewellery demand from July to September 2014, softened by 4 per cent to 534 tonne compared to 556.3 in the same quarter last year.
As far as India is concerned, its jewellery demand saw a 60 per cent year-on-year increase to 183 tonne in Q3 2014, the second highest Q3 record for the country.
While the increase is partly reflective of the weakness in Q3 in India last year - when the government introduced import curbs and raised import duties - it also demonstrates the resilience of the country's appetite for gold jewellery.
Improved consumer confidence in both the domestic economy and the new government added to the positive sentiment, with strong levels of purchasing being seen in the build up to festival Diwali, it said.
In China, jewellery demand for Q3 2014 was down 39 per cent year-on-year, but was broadly in line with both Q3 2012 and the 5-year quarterly average (of 148.2 tonne and 154.9 tonne, respectively).
Whilst in the US and UK, jewellery demand was strong, buoyed by ongoing economic recoveries.
In the US, jewellery demand grew 4 per cent to 34 tonne, the highest Q3 since 2009, and in the UK, jewellery demand had its fifth consecutive quarter of year-on-year growth.
"This quarter, the market continued to find its feet after an exceptional 2013, with China catching its breath and buying in the build up to Diwali driving Indian jewellery purchases", the report said.
In 2013, India was impacted by import curbs and increased import duties imposed by the previous government, whereas exceptional buying in China during the same period shaped buying patterns in 2014," WGC Managing Director of Investment Strategy Marcus Grubb said.
