At 3:50 p.m., each tael of gold bars was listed by Saigon SJC Jewelry Company at 74.5 - 77.5 million VND per tael, an increase of 1.5 million VND compared to two hours ago. However, the difference between buying and selling remains the same at 3 million VND. This price is maintained until the end of the day.
At DOJI, the price also reversed and increased rapidly, but the buying and selling gap widened to 5.5 million VND per tael. Buying is currently 72 million VND, while selling is 77.5 million VND.
The price of gold bars increased while the world price decreased by ten dollars to 2,077 USD. After many strong adjustments during the day, SJC gold bar price has narrowed the gap with the world to more than 16 million VND per tael, instead of 20 million VND as yesterday.
Before that, SJC gold price experienced a short period of free fall. At 1:45 p.m., SJC suddenly adjusted the price to 74 - 77 million VND per tael. DOJI also decreased to 74 - 77 million VND per tael. This price decreased by nearly 3 million VND compared to the beginning of the morning, an unprecedented sharp adjustment.
The buying and selling difference also widened to 3 million VND, double that of yesterday. This move is often applied by gold businesses when prices fluctuate strongly to limit risks.
At around 2:30 p.m., Saigon Jewelry Company SJC adjusted the gold price by 1 million less than half an hour before, to 73 million purchased and 76 million sold. DOJI also reduced the selling price to 76 million VND but the buying price was only 72 million VND, the buying - selling margin widened to 4 million VND.
Unlike the "dancing" of gold bars, the price of gold rings and jewelry this afternoon remained stable at about 63-64 million VND per tael, unchanged compared to recent days. The buying - selling margin for this type of product is kept at less than 1 million VND.
Domestic gold prices fell sharply after Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh late on December 27 sent a telegram to the State Bank and ministries on solutions to manage the gold market, which required regulating domestic prices according to the law. market, not to compete with international standards.
At gold shops in Ho Chi Minh City this afternoon, despite strong price fluctuations, many people still came to trade, mainly gold bars.
At 2:50 p.m., a constant stream of customers came and went at the SJC Nguyen Thi Minh Khai gold bar counter (District 5), including both buying and selling. Someone saw the price drop so they came to buy 5 taels more.
In just half an hour, there were about 40-50 visitors coming to buy and sell gold bars, more exciting than jewelry trading. Many customers were disappointed when they saw the buying and selling gap widening. Some people called their relatives to ask before finalizing the sale.
A couple in District 5 said they bought it when the price was 60 million VND. "Yesterday I saw the price of 80 million but I didn't sell it. Now I saw it had dropped so much that I sold it because I was afraid it would decrease further," the husband said.
Another elderly customer brought 3 taels of gold as a gift to sell because he saw the price. But when she arrived, the price dropped sharply. She was advised by the staff not to sell if she didn't need the cash, as she could lose money when the price difference was so high. "But I still decided to sell it because I was afraid it would decrease further," she said.
In Hanoi, the trading atmosphere is also more exciting when the price of gold bars drops rapidly. At 3:20 p.m., at a gold shop on Xuan Thuy Street, Cau Giay, there were so many customers coming in and out that staff had to set up more plastic chairs for customers to sit and wait for their turn to pay.
Although prices continue to decrease, the number of buyers is still slightly higher. Feeling impatient after many days of high gold prices is part of the reason why many people buy gold now. Mr. Vu (Cau Giay) said he took advantage of a 30-minute break in the middle of the afternoon to buy two taels of gold bars. In recent days, the gold price has been hovering around 80 million, making him hesitate. "I waited forever, but now the price has dropped so I can buy it. In the long run, I think gold will definitely go up," he said.
Meanwhile, the fact that stores continuously lower the buying price and widen the selling price range to 4-5 million makes gold holders hesitant to sell at a loss. "In just a few minutes, the price of gold dropped several million, so I changed my intention to sell to buy," said a customer who came to the transaction. At this store, the price of gold bars SJC bought at 3:30 p.m. was only 71.5 million VND, while the price sold was 76 million VND per tael.
Due to the recent sharp fluctuations in gold prices, according to the State Bank, the main reason is due to psychological factors due to the continuous increase in international gold prices. The trading volume of both buying and selling in the past few days has only increased slightly, and in general has not fluctuated abnormally.
The Monetary Authority said it will continue to closely monitor developments in the gold market and be ready to deploy a stabilization intervention plan when necessary. In January 2024, this agency will submit a summary report of Decree 24, including proposals to amend and supplement a number of gold market management regulations to suit the new market context. Faced with complex and unpredictable developments in the international and domestic gold markets, the State Bank recommends that people be cautious in gold transactions.
After a long period of "inactivity" despite strong world fluctuations, the price of SJC gold bars in the past two months suddenly increased rapidly and strongly, pushing the gap between the two markets increasingly wider. At its peak, on December 26, despite the world market going sideways and increasing slightly around the 2,050 USD mark per ounce, the domestic gold bar price "floated" up two million VND during the day and set a record of over 80 million VND. amount, 20 million VND more expensive than internationally. In the past two days, SJC price has remained anchored around this high mark.
Experts say that the scenario of galloping gold prices and free fall is not the first time it has happened. Gold bar prices have had many sessions where they increased faster, moved out of phase or decreased more slowly than the world. Last year, gold bars caused a stir in public opinion when the gap compared to the world was over 20 million VND.
Explaining this phase difference, experts say that the gold bar market is a special market, often called an imperfect market. This is a special commodity because demand has increased but supply has "stood still for many years".
Minh Son - Quynh Trang