Kuwait''s gold trading industry worth two billion dollars

KUN0022 4 GEN 0378 FRANCE /AFP -UJM0 ECO-KUWAIT-GOLD Kuwait's gold trading industry worth two billion dollars By Muntaha Al-Fadhli KUWAIT, Oct 1 (KUNA) -- Kuwait's gold and jewelry market transactions amount to two billion US Dollars (USD) and some 35 tons of gold per year, said Chairman of the Kuwaiti Gold Merchants' Union Hussein Al-Arbash. Speaking to Kuwait News Agency (KUNA), he said that Kuwaitis deal with USD 1.35 million worth of pure gold and USD 1.7 billion worth of crafted jewelry and precious stones annually. Moreover, he said the Kuwaiti market is distinctive among markets of the GCC due to the types of jewelry it offers. He ruled out the possibility that gold prices would drop as global demand was on the rise and international banks were offering their reserves for sale. The World Gold Council's monthly report showed that the Middle East's demand on gold dropped, in the second quarter of 2006, by 25 percent compared to prices of the previous year, with demand dropping 32 percent in Saudi Arabia, 21 percent in the UAE, and 30 percent in Kuwait. The report states that this decrease in demand was in reaction to fluctuating gold prices in Asia and the Middle East due to regional factors. Hussein Al-Sayegh, a gold merchant, told KUNA that Kuwaiti consumers more commonly purchase 18, 21, and 22-carat gold, adding that many chooses it as a safe means for investment. In the past century, the price of gold posted an unprecedented increase that reached USD 800 per ounce, noting that although crafted gold was bought at a price higher than the pure gold, it was sold at the price of pure gold. Jewelry in Kuwait is tax-free and gold is imported from India, Singapore, Hong Kong, Italy, Bahrain, and the UAE, he said. Meanwhile, director of the department of precious metals at the Central Gold Market, Mubarak Al-Nomas, told KUNA that once a merchant imported gold and jewelry, it must be taken to the department to inspect its level of purity. As for the department's head chemist, he said that advanced technology allowed the inspection of gold and other precious metals without the need to subject crafted jewelry to high levels of temperature. He added that the pieces would then be stamped as a proof of inspection. (end) maf.ema KUNA 011311 Oct 06NNNN