Higher duty takes shine off gold, silver imports

New Delhi: India’s gold and silver imports softened in July following a sharp increase in customs duty on these precious metals, according to data released by the commerce ministry.

While gold imports rose by only 4.77 per cent to USD 4.16 billion, silver imports dipped 66.1 per cent to USD 171.68 million in July, the data showed.

The government has increased import duty on precious metals from 6 per cent to 15 per cent effective May 13. Prices of the yellow metal were hovering around Rs 1,57,000 per 10 grams (inclusive of all taxes) in the national capital on Thursday. Silver was priced at around Rs 2.40 lakh per Kg.

Cumulatively during April-July 2026-27, gold imports grew by 32.41 per cent to USD 15.17 billion, while silver imports declined 50.81 per cent to USD 718.42 million.