Sales sluggish on Akshaya Tritiya, lightweight items preferred: Jewellers

Sales of jewellery and gold items remained sluggish on the auspicious Akshaya Tritiya day on Saturday despite heavy footfalls at stores as high prices of the precious metal dampened the festive demand, according to jewellers.

Jewellers are expecting a nearly 10 per cent decline in sales volume on Akshaya Tritiya this year compared to last year as gold prices have zoomed around 20 per cent since last year and customers are either making token purchases or going for lightweight jewellery. Akshaya Tritiya day is considered auspicious for buying gold, jewellery and valuables.

However, as the auspicious occasion is spread over two days this year, jewellers are hopeful that sales will revive on Sunday.

There have been steady footfalls since morning in jewellery retail stores, however, consumers are mainly going in for lightweight jewellery or 1-2 grams of gold coins as a token purchase to celebrate the festive occasion, jewellers said.

"We have been getting positive responses on consumer