India hikes gold import duty to 15%, jewellery demand crashes 70% post-May 13
Effective duty on gold and silver raised to ~15% from May 13, 2026, with BCD doubled from 5% to 10%. Jewellers report demand collapsing to 7.5 tonnes from 25 tonnes. Move targets $84B FY26 bullion imports (10.8% of merchandise), after gold imports surged 81.7% YoY and silver 157.2% YoY in April.
What happened
Government of India · India hiked effective import duty on gold and silver to ~15% from May 13, 2026, aiming to curb non-essential imports. Industry reports a
Key facts
- 15% effective duty
- BCD raised 5% to 10%
- $84 billion gold/silver imports FY26
- 10.8% of merchandise imports
- gold imports +81.7% YoY April 2026
- silver imports +157.2% YoY
- demand fell to 7.5 tonnes vs 25 tonnes (-70%)
Why this matters
Distressed mid-tier jewellers and unorganized players will buckle under working capital stress within two quarters—prepare a target list now for opportunistic roll-ups at depressed multiples once demand visibility returns.