Today's Gold Rate in Chennai

• The quantity of the gold in grams

• The purity of the gold in carats

• The state for which you want to know the gold rate

For example, if you want to know the 1 gram gold rate today in Chennai, choose 1 gram, 24 carat, and Chennai as your inputs.

Here’s a calculator you can use to know today’s gold rate in Chennai and other cities of the nation.

1. Gold Coins and Bars:

This is among the most traditional and popular ways of investing in gold. The price of gold bars and coins tend to stay in line with the live gold rate in Chennai. There are no other costs levied except for taxes.

However, make sure you buy your gold from an authentic seller and keep your options open in case you want to sell the gold in the future. Generally, banks sell gold coins and bars, but they cannot repurchase it as opposed to jewellers, who can sell and repurchase it.

2. Jewellery:

Buying jewellery during important festivals and weddings is a tradition throughout the nation, including Chennai. As a result, it is one of the most common and popular ways to invest in gold.

However, keep in mind that along with taxes, gold jewellery also comes with labour charges. These can drive up the cost of purchasing gold. So, if you want to purchase gold solely for investment purposes, gold coins and bars are a far more efficient choice.

Apart from these, you can also invest in gold through investment schemes offered by the government, banks, and jewellers. These include:

• Gold mutual funds

• Gold Exchange Traded Funds

• Sovereign Gold Bonds

• Gold Futures Contracts

Be sure to read the terms and conditions carefully before investing in these gold schemes.

However, as a gold coin or bar, you can buy 24-carat gold. The carat represents the percentage of gold present in a piece. Some of the most common purity levels are 24 carat (99.9% and above), 22 carat (92%), 18 carat (75%), 14 carat (58.33%).

• Weight:

Given the soaring gold price in Chennai and across the nation, having your gold’s weight off by even a gram can denote a substantial loss. The 1-gram gold rate today in Chennai is almost at ₹6,000.

This means that even half a gram of loss would result in a loss of approximately ₹3,000 if the gold rate stays the same. This loss only increases if the rate increases! So, make sure the vendor weighs the gold in front of you and the same is stated correctly in your invoice.

• Certification and Hallmark:

Ensuring that you buy certified gold is essential for two reasons – easy exchange in future and assurance of purity. In the case of a jeweler, checking the hallmark is an essential step that you should not miss.

Hallmark is the mark of the purity of the gold you are buying. Having hallmarked gold ensures that you do not suffer any loss during reselling. This usually happens when the purity of the gold metal you have purchased turns out not to be what you expected.

• Labour charges:

Labour charges or making charges are what the vendor or the jeweller charges as a cost of making jewellery from the gold. These charges vary for each jeweller and the type of jewellery you buy.

Since it is added to your final cost, make sure you are charged appropriately for what you are buying. In the case of jewellery, you can even visit the vendor’s website to understand these charges better. However, if buying a customised jeweller, talk to each vendor to get an idea.

Gold rates are impacted by the dollar’s position in the market, sharing an inverse relation to each other. So, when the dollar is strong, the gold prices in Chennai and across the nation tend to fall. And when the dollar falls, the gold prices increase.

• Bullion Associations

Bullion associations in India play a crucial role in determining the live gold rate in India and throughout the nation. One association to watch for in particular is the India Bullion and Jewellers Association Ltd. or IBJA.

The association fixes the gold rate twice a day – the opening and closing price.

These prices are fixed by assessing the international gold market and current market data received from major dealers across the country. The association considers the market demand, transportation costs, and other factors to collate the current market data.

• Inflation and Global Economy

Since gold is a great investment option to hedge inflation, high inflation can drive the cost up and vice versa.

Apart from that, as India is one of the largest gold importers of gold, any changes in the import cost affects the price of gold. Such changes mainly result from economic upheaval across the world.

To calculate the purity of the gold, you can simply divide the carats by 24 and then multiply the result by 100. For example, if you have 22K gold, divide 22 by 24. This would give you 0.9166. Multiplying that by 100 will give you 91.66%, which is the percentage of gold present in your gold piece.

To ensure standardisation of this purity and streamline the authenticity process, there are BIS standards that jewellers and vendors adhere to. When a gold piece has purity in line with the BIS standard, it gets hallmarked. This is why it is recommended that you buy hallmarked gold.