Buyers bear heavy losses
The price of SJC gold has continuously decreased on the day of the God of Wealth’s death anniversary. At 11am, SJC gold decreased nearly 1 million VND/tael, causing gold rings to also decrease. Saigon Precious Metals, Gemstones and Jewelry Company listed the price of SJC gold at 74.5 – 77.5 million VND/tael, a decrease of 900,000 VND/tael compared to the early morning. The buy-sell spread is at 3 million VND/tael.
If customers purchased at 78.4 million VND/tael in the morning, they would have already incurred a loss of 3.9 million VND/tael by noon.
Bao Tin Minh Chau Company also reduced the price by 500,000 VND/tael, listing the price of SJC gold at 74.5 – 77.5 million VND/tael for buy-sell. Plain round rings are at 64.5 – 65.9 million VND/tael for buy-sell, a decrease of 100,000 VND/tael compared to the morning. The buy-sell spread is at 1.4 million VND/tael.
People lining up to receive gold. Photo: Ngoc Mai.
The closer it gets to noon, the more people line up. Photo: Ngoc Mai.
Many stores are crowded with customers. Photo: Ngoc Mai.
Anh Minh Thanh (in Thanh Xuan, Hanoi) said he bought 1 tael of SJC gold at 77.9 million VND/tael at 10am. Just an hour after leaving the gold shop, when checking the selling price again, Mr. Thanh discovered that he had lost 400,000 VND/tael compared to the purchase price and suffered a loss of up to 3.4 million VND/tael if sold to recover the capital.
Explaining why the domestic gold price decreased on the day of the God of Wealth’s death anniversary, a representative of Bao Tin Minh Chau Company said that gold buyers chose to start buying at the beginning of the year from the 5th day of the Lunar New Year instead of waiting until the 10th day as in previous years. In addition, the world gold price also had a session of approximately 30 USD/ounce decrease before Tet, which caused the domestic gold price to decrease accordingly.
Buyers follow the market, sellers earn billions
This year’s God of Wealth’s death anniversary also saw the continuous adjustment of the price of plain rings – a product with less price volatility compared to gold bars – while last year, plain rings at large “gold shops” all increased by no less than half a million VND per tael a few days before the God of Wealth’s death anniversary.
Early this morning, the price of plain rings reached a peak of 66 million VND/tael and was 6 million VND higher than the world price, but then, despite people lining up to buy, the price of plain rings unexpectedly decreased.
Many people lined up for an hour just to buy 1 tael of gold on the God of Wealth’s death anniversary. Photo: Ngoc Mai.
Ms. Ngoc Phuc (in Long Bien, Hanoi) said she arrived at Tran Nhan Tong Street, the Gold Street, at 9am but had to wait until 10am to make her purchase. “Every year, I buy 1 tael to save for my child. Today, I was surprised because the price decreased. The amount I buy is small, so whether the price increases or decreases, it’s not a big issue for me,” Ms. Phuc said.
As it approached noon, the number of people coming to gold shops increased. Mr. Minh Tu (in Thanh Xuan, Hanoi) waited to record the number and lined up to buy 2 taels of gold. “Last year, I bought 1 tael of gold on the God of Wealth’s death anniversary. Until now, I have made a profit of over 1 million VND/tael. Even though the current price is nearly 6 million VND/tael, I am not worried because I buy a small amount,” Mr. Tu said.
Customers earning billions on the God of Wealth’s death anniversary. Photo: Ngoc Mai.
Among the customers waiting since early morning until noon, most of them bought from 1 tael to a few taels, but there were still many customers who took the opportunity to sell and take profits.
Just as he put each stack of money in his backpack, Mr. Nguyen Minh (in Dong Da, Hanoi) shared: “Today, I sold 13 taels of plain rings and earned more than 1 billion VND. I specialize in investing in gold rings, but the price is not volatile, so the profit is not much. At the end of 2023, I bought when the price was just over 60 million VND/tael, but now when selling, the profit is not as high as expected.”
