TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Gold demand surges as people turn to bullion to protect wealth
Gold sales in Indonesia have increased sharply this year as many people still believe that bullion remains a safe haven in times of financial or political uncertainty
Change Size
G
span>Gold sales in Indonesia have increased sharply this year as many people still believe that bullion remains a safe haven in times of financial or political uncertainty.
Local gold trader Sembada Gold director of operations Hendry Wijaya said his company recorded a 15 percent year-on-year growth in gold sales in October, citing the global uncertainties, caused by trade tension between the United States and China.
“People are buying more gold because they know it is a safe haven to face inflation and global uncertainties,” said Hendry in Jakarta on Friday.
Sembada Gold currently has three retail stores in East Java with most of the buyers being retail investors seeking a relatively safe investment, as well as those who bought jewelry for lifestyle and investment.
According to a report by the World Gold Council (WGC), the world’s demand for gold reached 1,107 tons in the third quarter this year, up 3 percent from 1,079 tons in the same period last year.
Investment in gold-backed exchange-traded funds offset a decline in purchases of jewelry, bars and coins to push global gold demand slightly higher in the third quarter according to the WGC, as reported by Reuters.
Gold is traditionally seen as a safe investment in uncertain times, and the worsening health of the global economy triggered a growing demand from financial investors such as asset managers and hedge funds.
The price of Antam’s gold was unchanged at Rp 747,000 (US$53) per gram on Monday after a decline by Rp 1,000 per gram on Saturday.
Diversified mining company PT Aneka Tambang (Antam) vice president for precious metals and marketing Iwan Dahlan told reporters during a discussion on Friday that the public’s awareness of gold investment had boosted the company’s gold sales.
“We are seeing a rise in public awareness of gold as a safe haven, as we recorded significant sales growth this year,” he said, adding that the company had sold 31 tons of gold year-to-date (ytd), up 19 percent from 26 tons of gold sold in 2018.
“Exports account for 60 percent of the total gold sold this year as it gave us more profits due to better price abroad [compared to in Indonesia],” said Iwan, adding that the domestic buyers were mostly retail investors while gold exporters were mainly businesses.
He expected that the company would sell around 35 tons of gold next year, citing the increase in public awareness, which could potentially boost sales.
In a bid to widen its customer base, Antam partnered with several gold resellers such as online marketplace Tokopedia and online gold-selling platform Lakuemas.
Lakuemas business development director Junior Sambyanto said the platform aimed to boost the younger generation’s investment in gold as 80 percent of its 20,000 customers were aged around 25 to 34.
“We provide our customers with an online application in which they could start investing in gold starting from Rp 50,000 [US$3.55] and we also provide gold ATMs to attract public interest,” said Junior.
He added that the platform currently had five gold ATMs in five different malls in Jakarta with the platform aimed to enhance its presence in Surabaya next year.
