Dougal wrote:Selling in your home country might be an issue but Indian jewellers who are used to dealing with 'proper' gold will usually give you a fair value.
A few years ago my wife brought some un-hallmarked gold over to the UK. It was bought at a reputable place on Sukhumvit, BKK and was a typical '3 baht' bracelet and a '5 baht' necklace. The sort of chunky sparkly things that Thai people are often draped in. We had it tested at a reputable jeweller in the UK who confirmed and certified that it was 23 carat. The insurance value was about three times what we had paid in Thailand. So, with the pound signs flashing in our eyes, we asked at three or four jewellers how much they would be prepared to give us for the items. Every single one, including one Indian jeweller, would only give 'scrap' value. I.e. the value of the weight of the gold at the market rate that day. This worked out to be not far off what we had paid for the items. Apparently there is no market for these Oriental style items and the gold would be used to make jewellery more to western tastes. We were advised that anyone interested in Oriental jewellery styles would be more than likely to know where to get them in India or Thailand etc. anyway. We gave up on our illicit gold importing idea after about half an hour!
With reference to the topic Gold in Thailand I found this aticle in the TNA.
What are you waiting for? Run and buy!!! NOW.
Gold prices likely to stay higher next year
BANGKOK, Dec 27 (TNA) – Gold prices are likely to be on the rise next year due to a speculation by hedge funds and a volatility of the economy and currency exchange rates, according to an industry executive.
Chitti Tangsithipakdi, president of the Gold Trading Association, said gold prices in the world market stayed in a narrow range at around US$495 per ounce on the New Year eve since most markets overseas are closed.
However, he forecast the global gold prices would fluctuate again next year since hedge funds would turn to speculate on gold prices instead of oil prices and economic conditions and currency exchange rates would be volatile.
He said it is very likely the gold prices would increase to $540 per ounce, the highest in 25 years. It would result in local gold prices edging up to the record high of 10,550 baht per baht-weight.
“Next year, gold prices will be on the rise and remain high volatile on a speculation by hedge funds. So, speculators must be cautious because prices may rise or decline by several hundred baht each day.â€
Jaime wrote:
A few years ago my wife brought some un-hallmarked........ We had it tested at a reputable jeweller in the UK who confirmed and certified that it was 23 carat.
This raises a couple of questions. The claim here is that the gold (as in found in jewelery) is 96.6 %. A little over 23 carat with my current understanding of gold measurement.
The insurance value was about three times what we had paid in Thailand. So, with the pound signs flashing in our eyes,
Watch this one people. I have heard of this before. Insurance premiums are loosely based upon the value of the insured item. However when you make a claim you will find that the loss adjusters will give you the absolute maximum of the value of the goods at the time of loss. In the mean time you have been paying inflated premiums. Making a false claim to an insurer is a crime in most countries in the West.
Including one Indian jeweller, would only give 'scrap' value. I.e. the value of the weight of the gold at the market rate that day. This worked out to be not far off what we had paid for the items. Apparently there is no market for these Oriental style items and the gold would be used to make jewellery more to western tastes.
My understanding exacltly. If there was any profit to be made in importing gold and selling on a private basis then it would already be being done on a large scale. Having said that though there are Indian jewellers in Southall in West London who will sell imported Indian and Oriental gold jewellery (totally legally I believe). This is just to cater for taste though. As has been mentioned many times already on this thread, the colour and styles are different. The charge is usually a little more than it would be in the East.
One question somebody may be able to answer is:
What the VAT implications when taking Gold to Europe?
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Norseman wrote:
Gold prices likely to stay higher next year
Gold prices are likely to be on the rise next year due to a speculation by hedge funds and a volatility of the economy and currency exchange rates, according to an industry executive.
Juat for the record: HHAD had this breaking news on print appx 2 hours before Bangkok Post mentioned it.
Jaime wrote:The insurance value was about three times what we had paid in Thailand. So, with the pound signs flashing in our eyes,
Watch this one people. I have heard of this before. Insurance premiums are loosely based upon the value of the insured item. However when you make a claim you will find that the loss adjusters will give you the absolute maximum of the value of the goods at the time of loss. In the mean time you have been paying inflated premiums. Making a false claim to an insurer is a crime in most countries in the West.
Which is why reputable insurers advise you to have your goods independently revalued every year or couple of years. There is nothing in it for the jeweller to over value the items - he gets paid the same fee for the service whether the items are coal or diamonds.
hi
to have gold bought in thailand hallmarked in the uk it needs to go to a goverment assay office found in many citys
but beware i took a 10 baht bracelet (152 grams) about 0.5 gram of lesser grade gold was used for the solder so the assay office could only stamp it 14 karret
for insurance reasons i ahs to get it certified with a jeweler the report came back as 22+ karret and was valued at around 4 times more than what i paid in china town
the assay office can do a report for insurers but they still request a jewellers value
and as said before the norm for gold in thailand is 96.6 pure as in the uk (k gold is 37.5% pure and 18 k is 75% pure
hope this helps
jambo
