In April, India witnessed an increase in the purchase of gold and silver. Gold purchases were up by 81.69% to $5.62 billion, while those of silver increased by 157.16% to $4.11 million. The surge was attributed to rising costs of precious metals. Starting May 13, the government increased customs duties on gold and silver from 6% to 15%.

The Commerce Ministry’s data revealed that the value of gold imports in the 2025-26 fiscal year increased by 24% to a record $71.98 billion, despite the quantity decreasing by 4.76% to 721.03 tons. Imports of silver surged by almost 150%, reaching $12 billion, despite increasing by 42% in volume to 7,334.96 tons.

Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agarwal stated that the increased import duty is likely to reduce imports this year. In the case of silver, the impact of the duty hike may be relatively minimal due to its industrial use. He believes that consumption-based demand will definitely decline. He also clarified that the Tariff Rate Quota (TRQ) under the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with the UAE has not had a significant impact on gold imports.

Precious metal imports saw a significant jump in April. High gold prices were a major reason for this increase. The price of gold in the national capital is around Rs 156,000 per 10 grams. Silver is around Rs 2.53 lakh per kilogram. Switzerland is the largest supplier of gold, accounting for nearly 40%. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and South Africa are also major suppliers. Precious metals account for more than 5% of the country's total imports.

The government has increased customs duties to discourage the import of precious metals. This move could help control the country's trade deficit and current account deficit. Rajesh Agarwal explained that gold imports from the UAE have declined in both value and volume. India's import of gold dore for refining has been positive. It comes from several sources, including Africa, Latin America, and the United States.

The increase in precious metal imports in April pushed the country's trade deficit to a three-month high of $28.38 billion. India's current account deficit stood at $13.2 billion in the December quarter, accounting for 1.3% of GDP. This was primarily due to a widening trade gap caused by a decline in exports. According to data released by the Reserve Bank of India on March 2, the current account deficit narrowed to $30.1 billion in April-December 2025.