India's gold investment demand tops jewellery for first time ever in March quarter

India’s investment demand for gold surpassed jewellery consumption for the first time on record in the March quarter, ​as investors turned to the precious metal amid subdued equity ‌market returns, the World Gold Council (WGC) said on Wednesday.

Stronger investment demand in the world’s second-largest consumer of gold partly offset a decline in jewellery buying, hit ​by a rally in prices, helping keep overall demand stable, ​the WGC said.

“For the first time investment demand surpassed jewellery ⁠demand,” Sachin Jain, chief executive of the WGC’s Indian operations, told ​Reuters.

“Investment demand will become increasingly prominent in the coming quarters, with both ​financial and retail investors showing more interest in gold.”

Investment demand in the March quarter surged 52% from a year earlier to 82 metric tons, while jewellery demand ​fell 19.5% to 66 tons, the World Gold Council (WGC) said in ​a report published on Wednesday.

Total gold consumption in the country rose 10.2% to 151 ‌metric ⁠tons during the quarter, according to the data.

For the first time, investment demand accounted for a larger share of total consumption than jewellery, rising to 54.3% in the quarter.

Investment demand typically accounts for about ​a quarter of ​India’s total gold ⁠consumption, but rising prices have been prompting investors to buy coins, bars, and gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs).

Inflows into ​gold ETFs jumped 186% in the March quarter from ​a year ⁠earlier to a record 20 tons, the WGC said.

Weak stock market performance in recent quarters has been drawing investors to gold ETFs, and the ⁠trend ​is likely to continue, Jain said.

Domestic ​prices have nearly doubled since the start of 2025, while India’s benchmark Nifty 50 has ​risen 2.4% during the period.