Figure of the month: 11 per cent

For many years, China has been the world’s largest producer and consumer of gold. India has, however, meanwhile overtaken the Middle Kingdom, at least when it comes to the volume of gold jewellery purchases. According to the World Gold Council, the Indian population bought more gold jewellery for the first time in 2024, at 563 tonnes, than Chinese consumers at ‘only’ 511 tonnes. This is partly due to the growth in prosperity, particularly among the Indian middle class, and partly due to a tradition that is unique to the country: the Indian wedding season.

Indian population owns roughly 25,000 tonnes of gold

Elaborate, gold-trimmed wedding dresses and gifts of gold – offered in the form of jewellery rather than bars – are considered indispensable at weddings in India. At roughly 5 million weddings per year between the end of October and the end of February, the tradition has led to the Indian population now holding around 11 per cent of the world’s gold reserves, or 25,000 tonnes of gold – more than the combined gold reserves of the US and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Incidentally, wedding guests giving gold generously are rewarded with a lavish celebration lasting up to 4 days. Less wealthy wedding couples take part in mass weddings where up to 100 couples celebrate together.

Blessed are those who stock up on gold in good time

It is often rumoured that the Indian wedding season fuels the gold price at a certain point in time, but this is, in fact, untrue. Indian consumers stock up on gold almost year-round to avoid peak prices for the precious metal as far as possible. This has, however, proven difficult in the 2024/2025 wedding season: although the Indian government reduced import duties on gold from 15 to 6 per cent last July, the precious metal has gone from one all-time high to another in the world’s largest democracy in recent months – a development which has already had a painful impact on Indian gold traders, who are reporting decreasing sales volumes.