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CapitalVia Research Desk ·
Data story
28 Sep 2026
28 Sep 2026
India's gold imports fell 58% this August, the lowest August since 2019.
India imported $2.30 billion of gold in August 2026, down from $5.44 billion a year earlier. Import duty went back up to 15% in May, and each gram now costs about a third more in rupees. The usual stock-up before the festive season has not shown up yet.
Gold imports, Aug 2026 vs Aug 2025
−58%year on year
That is $3.14 billion less gold than in August 2025. Silver went the other way: $1.03 billion, up 127%, though it is still down 8.8% for April–August.
August 2025$5.44 bn
August 2026$2.30 bn
Gold's share of India's goods imports: 8.8% → 3.3%
Every August since 2019: the gold import bill
US$ billion, HS 7108 (gold). The highs and lows come right after changes in customs duty.
1.36
3.70
6.70
3.56
4.68
12.55
5.44
2.30
20192020202120222023202420252026
Duty up to 12.5%Duty cut to 6%Duty up to 15%
In July 2019 the Budget raised gold duty from 10% to 12.5%, and imports that August fell to $1.36 bn. In July 2024 the Budget cut it from 15% to 6%, and August imports jumped to a record $12.55 bn. The rate went back to 15% on 13 May 2026. Prices, the rupee and the festival calendar all move these numbers too, but the extremes line up with duty changes.
Month by month: buying rushed ahead of the hike, then fell away
Gold imports, US$ billion, April–August of each year
20252026
Apr
+81.7%3.10 → 5.63
13 May: duty 6% → 15%
May
+34.0%2.55 → 3.42
Jun
+7.0%1.84 → 1.97
Jul
+4.7%3.97 → 4.16
Aug
−57.7%5.44 → 2.30
Year-on-year growth shrank every month after the hike and turned sharply negative in August. Thanks to April's rush, April–August imports are still 3.4% higher in dollars ($17.47 bn) and 13.7% higher in rupees.
+36%same gold, bigger bill
In July 2026 India imported almost exactly the same weight of refined gold bars as in July 2025 (20.3 tonnes vs 20.2 tonnes). It paid 36% more in rupees for them. A weaker rupee adds to the rise in the dollar price of gold, before any duty or GST is charged.
Jul 2025
₹92,467
per 10 g, import value
Jul 2026
₹1,25,768
per 10 g, import value
If you're salaried
Plan gold for Dhanteras or a wedding in rupees, not grams. At the import stage a gram costs about a third more than last year, and duty is now 15% instead of 6%. The same budget buys noticeably less gold.
If you're a founder
The goods trade deficit narrowed only slightly, from $27.22 bn to $26.86 bn. If gold imports had stayed at last August's level, it would have been about $30.0 bn. Without gold's fall, the gap would have widened.
If you set budgets
The release implies about ₹95.5 per dollar in August, against ₹87.5 a year ago. That is a 9% rise in the rupee cost of every imported input, whether it is gold, chips or software, before prices move at all.
$17.47 bn
Gold imports, Apr–Aug 2026 (+3.4%)
15%
Customs duty on gold since 13 May (was 6%)
$1.03 bn
Silver imports, Aug 2026 (+127%)
−81.7%
Aug 2026 vs the Aug 2024 record
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