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| After the lunar new year, last Saturday many local people seek gold when their prices soar with the global market. — Photo doisongphapluat.com |
HA NOI (Biz Hub) — After rising to their highest level since last August, local gold prices followed the downtrend in the global market to fall on Monday.
One tael of SJC gold was listed at about VND34 million (US$41,517) in most local jewellery companies.
After trading resumed on Saturday following the week-long Lunar New Year vacation, the local gold prices rose by more than VND1.4 million ($62.5) per tael, while prices soared in the global market. One tael of SJC gold was listed at more than VND34.4 million ($1,535) in most companies.
As Viet Nam celebrated the traditional holiday, the global bullion climbed to a 12-month-high of $1,260.6 on Thursday. Turmoil in global equities stoked the safe-haven demand for the metal, along with the Japanese yen and US treasury.
However, when the Chinese market reopened on Monday after the New Year holiday, according to reuters.com, the prices fell one per cent, falling for a second straight session after hitting its highest level in a year last week, dragged down by a rebound in stock markets and selling in China.
Gold trading floor kitco.com listed the gold price at $1,221.2 per ounce, a reduction of $16.7 per ounce compared to Saturday's rate.
The local gold demand is expected to rise sharply on Wednesday, when the Vietnamese people will buy the yellow metal to mark the God of Wealth Day on the 10th day of the Lunar New Year. It is believed that the buying of gold on this day, when the God of Wealth is said to return to heaven, brings good luck and prosperity throughout the year. The practice of buying the precious metal on this day has become popular in the northern cities and provinces only during in the last three years, while it has been observed in the southern region for a long time. — VNS