Mumbai: Huge quantities of gold were imported by nominated agencies during November’14 in anticipation that the Indian government will introduce some stricter import curbs. But the opposite happened as the government withdrew the 80:20 rule, which tied imports to exports, that made gold easily available in the Indian market. Gold imports surged in value terms in November to $5.61 billion, pushing the trade deficit to an 18-month high.

However, currently Indian families are increasingly banking on household gold to meet the bridal jewellery demand for the upcoming wedding season that kicks off from mid-January, a trend that’s likely to bring down the country’s import by 73% to 40 tonne in January ‘15 against 151 tonnes in November last year.

”Nearly 30-40 per cent of the bridal jewellery demand is being met by household gold. Consumers are buying new jewellery, but at a slower rate,” said Ketan Shroff, spokesperson, India Bullion & Jewellery Association.