On the morning of March 23, Saigon Jewelry Company (SJC) listed gold bar prices at 166 - 169 million dong, down 2 million dong per tael from the end of last week. Other brands similarly reduced their gold bar prices.
Plain gold ring prices also dropped. SJC listed them at 165,7 - 168,7 million dong per tael. Mi Hong saw trades around 166,5 - 169 million dong, while Phu Nhuan Jewelry Company (PNJ) set prices at 165,8 - 168,8 million dong per tael.
Since the beginning of the month, gold has lost 22 million dong per tael, an 11% adjustment. This three-week decline has reduced gold's year-to-date performance to around 7%.
Internationally, spot gold prices continued their decline early this week. At 9 a.m. Hanoi time, gold traded around 4,428 USD per ounce. Converted at Vietcombank's selling rate, this is approximately 140,5 million dong per tael (excluding taxes and fees). This pushed the domestic-international gold price gap to a record 28,5 million dong per tael.
Silver prices, both globally and domestically, mirrored gold's decline. International silver dropped to 66,5 USD per ounce. Domestically, silver bars and ingots fell below 2,6 million dong per tael this morning, meaning it's less than 70 million dong per kg. Phu Quy Gold Investment Joint Stock Company listed silver at 2,5 - 2,59 million dong per tael, and Sacombank - SBJ's silver ingots traded at 2,69 - 2,8 million dong per tael.
The foreign exchange market saw a slight increase in domestic USD prices. Vietcombank listed the USD at 26,074 - 26,344 dong this morning, up 5 dong from last week's close. Other currency exchange points now sell USD for around 28,000 dong.
Gold prices fell following the Middle East conflict, an unusual reaction according to experts, as gold typically gains during political tensions. This trend can be attributed to investors reallocating portfolios and shifting towards holding USD.
UOB Bank and World Gold Council experts believe gold faces short-term pressure from a stronger USD. However, they maintain a positive medium and long-term outlook for the precious metal.
By Quynh Trang
