The sharp rise in gold prices left consumers in the Kingdom hesitant to buy jewelry. Nevertheless, retailers seem determined to please whatever customers they have left. ‘'People are interested in buying large designs that weigh less; the market is not like it used to be.'', said Abdul Ghani, a salesman in Mazhar Jewelry, a retail jewelry shop in Mehmood Saeed Mall. ‘'Still, people cannot ignore gold, as long as there are occasions to dress for.'' The World Gold Council's (WGC) regional office in Dubai recently highlighted the increase in its annual report, which said that gold process have reached record levels in mid-March, 2008. The rocketing prices affected global demand on gold, causing it to fall by 25 percent in the Kingdom, 19 percent in UAE and 30 percent in other Gulf countries. Accordingly, the Kingdom moved backwards to be seventh in gold demand in the world. No specific reasons have been pointed out as the cause of this unprecedented increase. Still, analysts proclaim that if oil prices drop, it could wipe about 10 dollars off current gold prices. It also appears that time is of the essence when it comes to shopping for gold. ‘'Investors rearrange their positions before weekends. Branches of the world's international Gold Market are closed on Friday, until Monday'', said Abdullah Al-Ghamdi from Mazhar jewelry, who explained that prices freeze at one level on Saturday and Sunday. ‘'On Mondays, prices may go up or down, no one really knows.” Al-Ghamdi says that it's always better to buy on Saturdays or Sundays, since gold prices are continuously changing during the rest of the week. But does shopping on a certain day of the week change much for retail buyers? ‘'If there's an easier way to buy gold as an investment, I haven't found it,” said Ahmed Al-Dosri. ‘'I came here to buy a gift, as well as a small ring for my wife. If prices were the same as they were in the past, I would've bought my wife a 21k set instead of a tiny ring.'' Nowadays, small pieces of jewelry are sold for SR125 per gram. While full sized, large pieces are sold for SR105 per gram. ‘'A large gold chain weighs more, so we sell it by cheaper rates to attract customers'', said a salesman of Al-Yamamah Gold Market. However, it seems that the rapid increase in prices lead to a change in positions, people who are supposed to buy gold are selling the gold they already have, while retailers are buying for prices as low as SR90 per gram. Meanwhile, retailers sell their stock for SR110- 112 per gram, for India or Dubai made jewelry and SR105-108 per gram for local made designs. ‘'Some retailers are double-dealing, selling old jewelry as new after polishing it. They sell it with low rates and try to cheat customers by presenting local jewelry as Dubai or India made designs, since local jewelry is cheaper.', said a shop keeper. Retailers say price rates had reached SR125 earlier this month, and decreased steadily to SR110. ‘'The rates were increasing every three days, but now they've been stable for 20 days,” a salesman from Ramizan Jewelries commented. Early indications suggest that the demand in the second quarter of 2008 will surpass that in the first quarter due to the approach of summer holidays, a wedding and gifting season. __
