Gold makes up an integral part of the economy of India in general, but for Indian women, it often serves as an economic lifeline.
Indians have a love affair with gold. The country ranks as the second largest consumer of the yellow metal in the world. It’s not just a luxury. Even the poor buy gold in India. The yellow metal is interwoven into the country’s marriage ceremonies, and cultural and religious rites. Indians also value gold as a store of wealth, especially in poor rural regions. Two-thirds of India’s gold demand comes from these areas, where the vast majority of people live outside the official tax system.
Women drive much of the traditional demand for gold in the India, as former Reserve Bank of India governor Y. V. Reddy explained in the recent issue of the World Gold Council publication The Gold Investor.
Gold is inherited by women and they are deprived of it only under desperate circumstances. As gold is significantly nondepreciating in its physical form or in terms of value, it provides safety and security for women and, under difficult circumstances, liquidity.’
This post was published at Schiffgold on JULY 31, 2017.
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