Demand for gold and gold jewelry in Saudi Arabia continues to drop, says the World Gold Council (WGC) along with owners of gold outlets in the Kingdom.
Merchants maintain that demand for gold and jewelry has been falling consistently during the first two quarters of the current year, according to Arab News.
Kandara outlet market as in downtown Balad state that the reason behind the trend is rising gold prices.
“I’ve had a very bad season this summer, partly because of the rising prices of gold and partly because of the summer that’s keeping the shoppers away,” Saeed Bin Omar said at a gold jewelry outlet in Balad yesterday.
Demand in the Kingdom during the second quarter of 2006 fell by 32 percent in tonnage, while gold retail investment in bars and coins rose by 60 percent compared to the same quarter last year.
