Scrapping of excise on branded gold coins positive: Somasundaram

The government today scrapped the 1-percent excise duty currently applicable on branded gold coins.

Reacting to the development, PR Somasundaram, MD of India World Gold Council said total gold coin market in India is estimated at roughly 70-90 tonne and of this, branded portion is very small.

Directionally, he says, this is a good move and fits well into the larger scheme to increase transparency in gold investments.

Coins are typically sold at a much lower margin of 4-6 percent compared to jewellery. He refrained from commenting on price impact due to the move though.