Today’s Gold Rate in Chandigarh

With the introduction of the GST in July 2017, VAT of 1.2% (varies with state) has been replaced with 3% GST which consumers need to pay on total value of gold including making charges.

Sovereign Gold Bonds (SBGs) are government securities and one way to own gold in paper form. The minimum investment requirement in SGBs is 1 gram and maximum one can buy is 4 Kgs for an Individual. Investors can apply for the bond through SEBI authorized trading members, financial advisors of National Stock Exchange of India, designated banks specified by RBI after completing your KYC. The value of one bond will represent the price of 1 gm of gold. Other main features are given below:

• Interest: The bond bears an interest at the rate of 2.50% per annum. The interest will be credited semi-annually to your account.
• Returns: The returns from these bonds are linked to gold prices of 24K (999 fineness) published by IBJA (India Bullion and Jewellers Association Ltd. )thus ensuring purity.
• Tradeable: It is tradeable on NSE and BSE
• Redemption: The redemption price will be the simple average of the closing price of gold on the previous three days

SBGs are a safe bet for those who wish to own gold but don’t want the hassle that comes with storing it. Apart from the storage expenses that comes with physical gold, SGBs doesn’t have an expense ratio associated with gold ETF which makes it an ideal investment for those looking to invest in gold. It also scores on the taxation front as they do not attract capital gains tax if held until maturity. However, there are two aspects which one should know:

• These bonds are not available on -tap basis but are notified by the government (Usually happens every 2-3 months and the window will remain open for a week.
• The tenure of the bond is 8 years with an exit option available after the 5^th So, before investing in these bonds your future goal (the reason which you are investing in) should be 5-8 years away.

Gold ETFs are funds that invest in physical gold of 99.5 percent purity. Gold ETF units are listed on a stock exchange (BSE/NSE), one needs a demat account to purchase and sell units of a gold ETF. Once you have the account ready, choose from the number of Gold ETF available on the platform and place the order from your broker’s trading portal. Gold ETFs invest 90-100% in physical gold sourced directly from the RBI approved banks and rest in debt instruments. It is for this reason that returns from Gold ETF are mostly in line with the prices of physical gold.

Though investing in physical gold is one of the traditional ways of investment, Digital gold is a relatively new concept and is catching up with people due to its small investment requirement and ease of transacting.

Investment size: One can invest with as little as Re.1. However, this minimum limit varies from platform to platform.

Storage: It is stored in the valet from which you do your transaction.

Liquidity: Offers high liquidity as you can sell your accumulated gold anytime

BIS, a government body certifies the purity of metal used in the gold jewellery/artifacts. The process of certifying the purity of gold is called hallmarking which specifies the exact quality of gold used in the jewellery or gold artifacts. Thereby, it protects the consumer from counterfeiting or buying gold of lower quality compared to what is claimed by the jeweller. According to the BIS website, following are the components one must check while buying gold:

• BIS Mark: BIS logo indicates that its purity is verified in one of its licensed laboratories. One should know that BIS is the only agency approved by the government for hallmarking gold articles to ensure its purity
• Purity in Karats and Fineness: Purity of gold is indicated in two parts: Karat (KT) and Fineness(purity in parts per thousand)

• Assaying and hallmarking center’s Identification mark/number: Indicates in which laboratory your gold jewellery is assessed to check its purity.
• Jeweller’s Identification mark/number: The jewellery shop from where you are buying your gold jewellery will also put its identification mark

Note: Currently hallmarking in India is optional. However, from 15^th January 2021, any jeweller/ retailer selling gold jewellery to the consumer shall have to register with the BIS and can only sell gold jewellery and artefacts made of 14, 18, 22 karat if it is hallmarked.

One can use their gold as collateral to avail gold loan in Chandigarh. There are a number of financial institutions which offer gold loan in Chandigarh. One needs to visit the bank offering such facility and deposit their gold they are ready to pledge. You will be asked to complete the KYC norms and after verifying the purity of the gold, loan amount will be sanctioned to you. In return, the borrower needs to pay EMI or pay the entire principal and interest at the end of the tenor if he has chosen bullet repayment mode and until then your deposited gold will be kept in the secure vault of the bank.