World Gold Council (WGC) published, the India’s Gold Market Reform and growth report. At the juncture Juan Carlos Artigas, Global Head of Research-WGC said, “in 2017 we produced, India’s Gold Market – evolution and innovation. A lot has changed since that report was published.”

The drivers of Indian gold demand can term shortly as; econometric analysis shows that rising income is the most powerful driver of Indian gold demand in the long term. This bodes well for gold demand as the economy is set to benefit from a demographic dividend. The IMF forecasts per capita GDP growth of 23% between 2022 and 2026.

But while India is the second largest consumer of gold, its per capita consumption is low. And demand faces challenges in the short term from declining household savings rate and agricultural wages. Income may be the key long-term driver of demand, but it is affected by a variety of other factors, including policy measures.

Support from such measures is currently lacking as policy makers view gold demand solely through the prism of imports. Meanwhile, industry efforts to improve transparency are not cohesive. Building trust and improving awareness among consumers, together with innovation, can play a role in enhancing the image of India’s gold industry, boosting domestic demand and allowing it to play a pivotal role in rebuilding household finances in the post-covid world.