Jewellery stocks tumble; Sky Gold slumps over 12 pc

Jewellery stocks faced heavy selling pressure on Monday, with Sky Gold and Senco Gold tumbling over 10 per cent, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for postponing the purchase of gold and foreign travel for one year to save foreign exchange amid the West Asia crisis. In the short-term, the appeal may slow discretionary purchases, particularly in jewellery demand, and create cautious sentiment across bullion and jewellery-related businesses, an expert said. Sky Gold And Diamonds Ltd fell sharply by 12.24 per cent, Senco Gold cracked 11 per cent, Kalyan Jewellers tumbled 9.99 per cent, Thangamayil Jewellery tanked 9.79 per cent, Titan Company dived 8 per cent, Tribhovandas Bhimji Zaveri lost 6.83 per cent and PC Jeweller dropped 5.67 per cent on the BSE. In the equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex tanked 1,082.40 points to 76,243.56 in morning trade. The 50-share NSE Nifty dropped 309.45 points to 23,865.10. Emphasising that the Centre is trying to shield people from the adverse impact of the conflict in West Asia, PM Modi on Sunday called for judicious use of fuel, postponement of gold purchases and foreign travel, among other measures, to strengthen the economy. Addressing a rally organised by the Telangana BJP in Hyderabad, he suggested reducing petrol and diesel consumption, using metro rail services in cities, carpooling, increased use of electric vehicles (EVs), utilising railway services for parcel movement, and working from home to conserve foreign exchange amid the crisis in West Asia. Stressing the need to save foreign exchange due to the crisis, Modi called for postponing the purchase of gold and foreign travel for one year. ''PM Modi's appeal to the nation to curb the consumption of petrol/diesel, gold, chemical fertilisers and edible oil and refrain from avoidable foreign travel is a crisis management response to the current account deficit problem caused by high crude prices,'' V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist, Geojit Investments Ltd, said. This call for austerity has slightly negative implication for economic growth in FY27, he said. ''Particularly, the industries related to the austerity call like petroleum, chemical fertilisers, gold, air travel, hotel and related sectors will be sentimentally impacted,'' Vijayakumar added. Jateen Trivedi, VP Research Analyst, Commodity and Currency, LKP Securities, said PM Modi's remarks on delaying gold purchases should be viewed primarily from the perspective of India's macroeconomic stability and import management. ''India is one of the world's largest gold importers, and during periods of elevated crude oil prices and global uncertainty, high gold imports put additional pressure on the country's trade deficit and the rupee,'' Trivedi said. The timing of the statement is important because India is facing a combination of higher crude prices, geopolitical tensions linked to the US-Iran situation, and pressure on the currency due to rising import bills, he said. ''The appeal is unlikely to significantly change long-term Indian demand for gold because gold remains deeply linked to savings, investment, and cultural buying patterns. However, in the short-term, it may slow discretionary purchases, particularly in jewellery demand, and create cautious sentiment across bullion and jewellery-related businesses,'' Trivedi added.

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