RAWALPINDI: October 12 : Amidst hard crackdown on dollar and other mafia, gold mafia is still operating in the country without any hassle and as a result gold prices are being driven by fixers . The gold market released the prices of precious metal twice on Thursday. In the first session , fixer gave a jump in the gold prices by Rs 6000 and took the rates to Rs 206000 per tola and then after around two and half hours, the fixers reduced the rates of gold in the local market by Rs 5000 to pull down the rates of gold per tola by Rs 5000. Two times fluctuation in the gold prices in a few hours is a worst case of fixing in the local market.
The same dirty game was going on in currency rates. The currency market mafia was revising dollar rates in the open market twice or in some case thrice in a single day. How real market factor can play in such a way? This question is unanswered. Only a few gold traders can confirm that these are the fixers who are driving the local market.
The fixers have turned into a big bug for Pakistan. They are causing harm to gold business in Pakistan. A ‘bug’ really act like an insect to harm gold business in the country.
Pakistan’s gold market is extremely unpredictable. There is no real trajectory of gold rates in Pakistan’s gold market. This trend has damaged gold business in Pakistan. Historically, he people of subcontinent buy gold for weddings. In the last couple of years, gold prices have been jacked up irrationally by the fixers. Its not possible for a vast majority of the parents to buy gold for weddings of their youth.
Bostan Khan, chairman of All Pakistan Currency Dealers Association, had claimed in his exclusive talk with NEWSMAN a week ago that its corruption money which drives gold and currency market in Pakistan. He said the fixers inject ill-gotton money to derive gold and other markets in Pakistan where money earns money for its masters in short span of time.
In the recent days, gold prices had gone down considerably and many market experts attach downward trend in gold prices in Pakistan in the last two to three weeks to fears of a punitive crackdown on hoarding and smuggling of gold. Pakistan has been a big market for gold smuggling and hoarding due to its economic turmoil. The fixers take advantage of such situation and jack up prices artificially to make windfall profit.
