* Singapore premiums slightly widen to $1.50-$2.30/oz
* High premiums for gold, silver likely in 2022 – Singapore
dealer
* Gold sold at par with benchmark in Japan
Aug 12 (Reuters) – High domestic prices restrained physical
gold demand in India this week, while uncertainty surrounding
Taiwan-related developments prompted bullion importers in China
to hold off on big purchases.
Indian gold prices hovered close to an over
three-month peak of 53,113 rupees per 10 grams hit on Aug. 4.
Retail demand has been weak for the past few weeks as buyers
were waiting for a correction, said Ashok Jain, proprietor of
Mumbai-based wholesaler Chenaji Narsinghji.
Dealers offered discounts of up to $14 an ounce over
official domestic prices inclusive of 15% import and 3% sales
levies unchanged from last week.
Jewellers received good orders during last week’s The India
International Jewellery Show and were hoping festival season
could be good this year, said a Mumbai-based dealer with a
private bank.
Chinese premiums narrowed to $5-$9 an ounce over
international spot prices, from $4-$11 last week.
“As China continues to patrol near Taiwan, no one is
importing large amounts and everyone is unsure about the
implications” for China-U.S. relations, said Bernard Sin,
regional director, Greater China at MKS PAMP.
The People’s Bank of China controls how much gold enters
China via quotas to commercial banks.
Hong Kong dealers sold gold between on par with the
benchmark to $2 premiums.
“We could see elevated premiums for physical gold and silver
for the rest of the year. While this could dampen demand in the
short term, it would be easily overlooked by consumers if a
repeat of the 2020 price rally happens,” said Vincent Tie, sales
manager at Singapore dealer Silver Bullion.
Premiums of $1.50-$2.30 were charged in Singapore.
Brian Lan, managing director at dealer GoldSilver Central,
said wholesalers are ramping up purchases to prepare for
upcoming festivities. They also need to pick up production and
increase their range as the world opens up and more tourists
come in, he added.
(Reporting by Bharat Govind Gautam and Arundhati Sarkar in
Bengaluru, Rajendra Jhadav in Mumbai; Editing by Devika
Syamnath)
