High demand in gold sector, market still at discount: PR Somasundaram

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The demand for gold has been good during the Navratri festival and last year's December quarter saw the highest-ever sales in 25 years, said PR Somasundaram, Regional CEO-India, World Gold Council. Up to 344 tonnes of gold were sold in the December quarter, Somasundaram told CNBC-TV18.

Speaking on the festive demand outlook of precious metals, he said that this year, he doesn't expect that kind of a spike. The market is still at a discount.

Last year's demand spike came from a lot of pensive demand that supported the last quarter, "I don't think we will see that kind of demand scenario. However, it is much better than what we have seen in the first half, which was hardly seven percent above the same time last year, which was not one of the best of ones," said Somasundaram.

Up to  80 percent of the buying will happen through jewellery during Dhanteras, according to Somasundaram.

Speaking on coins, he said, "People do buy coins, but there are no branded coins in India other than what the jewellers sell. So. obviously the organised players will garner a very high market share."

The other ways of buying gold, like digital gold or ETFs, will also see a rise, but in the overall scheme, they have a very small contribution. ETF is still about 40-45 tons as the AUM digital gold, and though it has grown significantly, it is still very small. However, it has started to pick up, Somasundaram claimed.

But, there is a lot of interest in the urban areas to buy digital gold, and it may witness a spike, he said.

Despite the fact that global demand does not seem good, the demand in India seems good. This is due to the prices being affected by strong dollars and interest rates.

In two to three quarters, gold may react strongly in an upward movement, he opined.