India importers bought more than double the quantity of gold ahead of this year's peak festival season compared to the lead-up to Diwali in 2005 as a fall in prices attracted buyers, a top industry official said on Monday.
Suresh Hundia, President of the Bombay Bullion Association, estimated that in the month ahead of October 21, the date of the Diwali festival, imports of gold rose 123 percent to 156 tonnes from 70 tonnes in the month before Diwali last year. In 2005, Diwali fell on November 1.
International gold prices have traded in a rough range of $560 to $600 an ounce range so far this month, compared to a rough range of $460 to $480 an ounce in October last year. While the gold price is markedly higher this year, buyers have been attracted by a sharp fall in gold from over $700 an ounce earlier in 2006. In 2005, prices rose ahead of the festival season.
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