Commodities

MUMBAI: India’s purchase of paper gold doubled last year as corporates and SMEs, seeking a safe haven for their investments, invested heavily in gold exchange-traded funds (ETFs), a traditional favourite of wealthy individuals and households. Companies now account for nearly 50% of all ETF purchases in the country and SMEs, too have climbed on to the bullion bandwagon. “The gold …

Rice stockpiles are poised to reach the biggest in almost a decade as record harvests boost supplies and imports decline for the first time in three years. Inventories may gain 3 percent to 100.1 million metric tons, the most since 2003, as global imports contract 7.5 percent, the U.S. Department of Agriculture says. The Thai export price, a global benchmark, …

* Singapore to scrap GST on gold, aims to become bullion hub * Change in tax treatment takes into effect in October * Singapore wants to be pricing hub for gold By Lewa Pardomuan and Luke Pachymuthu SINGAPORE, Feb 20 (Reuters) – Singapore is seeking to lure bullion refiners by scrapping taxes on gold, a move which could also attract trading houses …

China is set to surpass India as the world’s top gold consumer this year, the World Gold Council (WGC) predicted. The demand for gold in China, the world’s largest producer, rose by 20% to 769.8 tonnes last year, driven by surging demand for jewelry and investment, while consumption in India, the world’s largest consumer, tumbled 7% to 933.4 tonnes as a result …

Soybean exporters in the U.S., the world’s top shipper, sold 2.923 million metric tons to China in the biggest one-day deal on record. Prices in Chicago rose to the highest in almost five months. The sale includes 2.75 million tons for delivery in the year that begins Sept. 1 and 173,000 tons prior to Aug. 31, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said today in …