Monday, 19th February 2007 (2527 views)

Gold sales in the United Arab Emirates rose by 53 per cent in the last few months of 2006 due to high levels of tourist visits during the period, according to new research.

Eid, Christmas, Diwali and New Year all contributed to a surge in sales of the precious metal according to the World Gold Council's regional office in Dubai.

High numbers of tourists visited UAE as price volatility subsided – meaning that gold jewellery enjoyed high demand.

On a yearly basis gold sales rose by 27 per cent from 6.4 billion UAE dirhams (£0.8 billion) to 8.1 billion UAE dirhams (£1.1 billion) from 2005 to 2006.

Moaz Barakat, the managing director of the World Gold Council in the Middle East, said: "World gold price volatility has affected the demand as anticipated in the beginning of this quarter.

"However; demand has increased towards the end of quarter three supported by price stability."

He added that the marketing strategies of the council have been very successful in promoting gold and increasing world retail investment demand through gold-backed exchange trading funds.

 

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