IT 
ES gold imports up 85% to nearly $3 billion in january
gold imports up 85% to nearly $3 billion in january
16 February 2016
India is the largest importer of gold in the world, the demand of which mostly comes from the jewellery industry.
During the April-January period of the current fiscal, gold imports have increased to USD 29.36 billion as against USD 27.42 billion in the first 10 months of 2014-15.
For the entire 2014-15 fiscal, gold was the third-largest commodity imported to India after crude oil and electronic items. Gold imports stood at USD 34.32 billion last fiscal.
In terms of volume, India -- the world's second-biggest gold consumer -- had imported around 900 tonnes in 2014.
Gold prices in the international market have fallen to a five-year low.
India imported 850 tonnes of gold during January-September period of 2015, as against 650 tonnes in the year-ago period.
In the July-September quarter of the current fiscal, CAD rose to USD 8.2 billion or 1.6 per cent of the GDP, from 1.2 per cent or USD 6.1 billion in the April-June quarter.