In recent days, international gold prices have entered a period of correction after hitting historic highs, leading to a synchronous decline in the quotes of Chinese domestic gold jewelry brands. The news of continuous diving in gold prices on April 4 quickly became a hot topic, drawing attention from the public. However, gold jewelry stores in different regions of China are showing completely different market scenes, creating a situation of “two extremes”.
On April 4, data showed that the June gold futures price on the New York Mercantile Exchange closed at $3035.40 per ounce, a decrease of 2.76%, wiping out the earlier gains of the week. With global trade tensions escalating, investors have started selling off gold in large quantities to offset the losses from the market downturn. The international gold price fell by 2.53% during the week.
On April 5, prices of gold jewelry within China also experienced a decline. Chow Sang Sang priced their 24k gold jewelry at 926 yuan per gram, down 22 yuan from the previous day’s price of 948 yuan per gram, a decrease of 32 yuan in two days. Chow Tai Fook priced their 24k gold jewelry at 932 yuan per gram, down 20 yuan from the previous day. Lao Miao Gold priced their 24k gold jewelry at 931 yuan per gram, down 15 yuan from the previous day’s price of 946 yuan per gram, a decrease of 30 yuan in two days.
It is noteworthy that despite the adjustment in gold prices, considering the labor costs for jewelry making, the prices of gold jewelry from brands like Chow Tai Fook, Lao Feng Xiang, and Chow Sang Sang still remain around 1000 yuan per gram.
Reported by “Luzhong Morning News” on April 7, during the Qingming Festival holiday, the price of gold jewelry at the Shuibei Gold and Jewelry Cluster in Shenzhen was 742 yuan per gram. A consumer on-site mentioned that they had visited the area before the Chinese New Year holiday when the gold price was 650 yuan, and they were surprised to see the price now nearly 100 yuan higher.
Major gold and jewelry stores in Shuibei continued to operate normally during the Qingming holiday. Some out-of-town tourists expressed confidence in the future trend of gold prices despite the repeated record highs in gold prices.
In Wuhan’s Wushang MALL·World Trade Business District, the atmosphere in gold and jewelry stores mirrored that of Shuibei in Shenzhen. According to a report by Xinyue Media on April 7, traditional gold, Chow Tai Fook, Chow Sang Sang, and other brand stores were bustling with activity. There were long lines outside the traditional gold store. Store staff revealed that to prevent scalp traders from bulk purchasing, these brands had to implement a purchase limit policy starting from April 3, allowing each customer to buy a maximum of five items.
In contrast to the markets in Shenzhen and Wuhan, the gold market in Beijing appeared to be quiet.
Reported by “Beijing Business Daily” on April 7, despite brands like Chow Tai Fook and Lukfook Jewelers offering promotional activities with discounts of 80-120 yuan per gram in offline stores, with some stores lowering gold prices to as low as 832 yuan per gram, the market enthusiasm remained subdued with few customers visiting the stores to make purchases.
Based on the online market situation on April 6, the prices for 24k gold products from Chow Tai Fook (jewelry and craft categories), Tide Jewellery, and Lukfook Jewelers were all at 932 yuan per gram; Lao Feng Xiang priced their 24k gold at 931 yuan per gram.
In the offline market, during the Qingming holiday, some stores endeavored to attract customers through discounts. On April 6, with the support of promotional activities, the prices of related gold products dropped to as low as 832 yuan per gram. However, customer traffic remained scarce in the stores, with many people just browsing and few making purchases.
Lukfook Jewelers offered a discount of 80 yuan per gram, setting the post-discount gold price at 852 yuan per gram.
With only a few customers browsing inside the stores, and many just looking without buying. A salesperson at Jinzhizun Jewellery store mentioned, “Today, the gold price is 932 yuan per gram. The store has launched a discount promotion of 100 yuan per gram, making the discounted price 832 yuan per gram.” “In addition to the discount promotion, the labor cost can also be discounted by 20%, and the gold price has dropped by more than 20 yuan in the past two days.”
Despite the major stores offering promotional activities, breaking the current sluggish situation in the gold sales market remains a challenge. A salesperson stated, “This kind of situation is too common lately. Most customers who come into the store are not looking to buy new products, many are just here for exchange, and more consumers prefer to observe and wait for the gold price ‘dip’.”
A consumer commented, “We originally planned to buy wedding gold jewelry worth over 30,000 yuan, which exceeded our budget. We decided to only purchase rings for now and wait for the gold price to fall before buying other jewelry.”
Many consumers are puzzled: Should they buy gold jewelry now or not?
On April 5, the Vice President of the Chinese Commercial Economic Society, Song Xiangqing, cautioned that the current gold price has entered a new stage of “high volatility, high risk, high expectation.” For investors, they should avoid blindly buying at high prices. With the current gold price at historical highs, there may be pressure for correction in the short term, and investors should be cautious of the risks brought by an overheated market. Rational investment is also advised. Investors are recommended to allocate gold assets reasonably based on their risk tolerance, avoiding leveraged investments or purchasing gold with loans.