Gold import volume down 18%, silver surges 56%

Rising imports of gold and silver have widened the trade gap, but demand trends differ for the two metals. Gold prices rose nearly 25% year-on-year to $94,554 per kg during April–December, leading to cautious buying. Import volumes fell 18.3% to 522 tonnes. However, due to higher prices, the total import bill still rose 1.8% to $49.4 billion.