Page 22 - Bullion World Volume 02 Issue 02 June 2022_Neat

Bullion World | Volume 2 | Issue 02 | June 2022

Thailand and Southeast Asia

bullion market, then and now

This development has changed the
Southeast Asia bullion operators'
stock ordering patterns. Previously
before the Covid-19 crisis, buyers
were willing to venture into other
parts of the world for more
competitive pricing, and they were
also used to the back-to-back "Just
in time" ordering pattern. But now,
to shorten the transportation time,
the buyers are looking more inwardly
for suppliers nearer to home. And
the "Just in time" ordering model has
now changed to the "Just in case"
model. As a result, operators store
more physical gold in anticipation of
another supply chain disruption.

In Thailand, the usual quotations for
transportation, insurance, and other
expenses, also known as 'premiums',
for importing and exporting gold
in Thailand were between 1 to 3
dollars. But during the peak of the
Covid-19 crisis, premiums have
jumped many folds to 25 dollars.

As we all know, Thailand is one of the
Ms Pawan Nawawattanasub world's leading travel destinations,
CEO, YLG Bullion

Then: and conduct our bullion business
Looking back, we never expect the activities.
Covid-19 pandemic crisis to last for
as long as almost three years and During the pandemic crisis,
still counting. The only comforting we saw the lockdown of many
fact is that although the mutating countries, which eventually led to
virus is very contagious, the impact systemic supply chain disruptions
on public health is not as severe from refineries' productions to
as it initially did. The latest virus transportation. We are talking about
"Omicron", is now commonly known the overall escalation of operation
as an endemic. On the other hand, costs here, but with materials
the virus has caused significant shortages, the bullion industry
changes, especially in Southeast is struggling to secure adequate
Asia countries, to how we operate supplies for the end-users.

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