Gold jewellers in Mumbai lost Rs 1,200 crore (Rs 12 billion) of business during the terrorist bloodbath that engulfed the metropolis from Wednesday to Saturday, a top industry official said.
"Jewellers lost business worth Rs 1,200 crore following the business shut-down in Mumbai due to the terror attacks," Bombay Bullion Association president Suresh Hundia told PTI in Mumbai.
The average business per day is Rs 300-400 crore (Rs 3-4 billion), he said.
Jewellers who produce one tonne of gold jewellery per day are facing a tough time as demand has fallen sharply due to high prices.
"Now the terror attack has hit them badly. It will take 10-15 days to recover," Hundia said.
However, the terror attack on Mumbai has not impacted gold prices in the local market. Prices have not been influenced by the attacks as the metal generally reacts only when faced with larger international crises and possible disruptions to oil supplies, analyst Amit Zaveri said.
Meanwhile, gold price rallied to a five-week high on the Mumbai bullion market last week at Rs 13,185 per 10 grams on fresh support.
In the local market, standard gold (99.5 purity) opened lower at Rs 12,870 but recovered afterwards to end at Rs 13,185 as against the last weekend's close of Rs 12,995, showing a smart gain of Rs 190 per ten grams.
