How Much Gold Did India Import in FY 2025-26? The Numbers Behind the Record

Fri June 05 2026

India’s equation with gold has never been purely financial. A wedding chain, a mother’s bangles, or a coin bought during a festival are rarely seen as simple purchases. This emotional pull helps explain why, even in a year of elevated prices, the country’s love for the yellow metal stayed strong.

According to SBI Research, the nation’s precious metal imports climbed to about $72.4 billion in FY 2025-26, up from roughly $57.9 billion in the previous fiscal.

That is a jump of a little over 24%, and it pushed imports to a record high. The nation spent far more foreign exchange on imported bullion, even as prices remained firm and policymakers kept an eye on external balances.

Why Gold Exchange is Gaining Prominence

When bullion import keeps rising despite the huge domestic stock that our country has, the obvious question is hard to ignore: why keep importing so much when so much old gold already exists within the country? That question is one reason gold exchange has moved from being a practical afterthought to a much more relevant consumer choice.

For years, many families preferred to hold on to the old jewellery, even when designs no longer suited their taste or lifestyle. Part of it was sentiment, but part of it was hesitation. People worried they would not get fair value, that purity checks would be confusing, or that deductions would appear from nowhere.

Now that mindset is slowly changing. As the prices of the metal rise, and important jewellery purchases like those for weddings are hard to put off, the value locked inside unused jewellery looks too significant to ignore. Exchanging old pieces for new ones is starting to feel like a beneficial financial decision.

Instead of adding only newly imported jewellery to meet fresh demand, the exchange creates a more circular route: existing household stock comes back into the market, gets valued, and is repurposed.

At a macro level, that shift matters because every gram reused domestically eases some pressure on future imports.

How Brands Like Tanishq Are Making a Tangible Difference

Still, value transfer only works when trust improves. This has historically been the weakest point in the process. A customer may be willing to part with an old necklace, but not if the valuation feels inappropriate. That is why reputed jewellers have been trying to make trade-in far more visible, especially around purity testing, weighing and melting.

When customers can actually see how the value is being determined, the transaction stops feeling intimidating.

· This is where Tanishq has managed to stand out in a meaningful way. The process is designed to happen in front of the customer’s eyes, rather than behind a counter or in a back room.

· Old jewellery is checked openly, purity is tested using a karatmeter, and the melting process is handled transparently in-store by master karigars behind a glass window.

· For customers who have spent years being sceptical of trade-in, that kind of visibility does more than build convenience; it removes anxiety.

Why Organised Exchange is Gaining Ground

Another barrier in the past was the assumption that jewellery bought elsewhere would not receive fair treatment.

· Many consumers believed trade-ins worked smoothly only if they returned to the original seller, with the bill in hand, and even then, the outcome might not feel simple.

· Tanishq, for instance, accepts old gold from any jeweller, across purities starting from 9KT, even in cases where the original bill is unavailable.

· Just as important, the rate structure is presented in a way that feels easier to understand, with no hidden deductions and the same selling and trade-in rates.

A Record Year, and a Smarter Response

India’s FY 2025-26 precious metal import, a jump from about $57.9 billion to $72.4 billion, reflects a country that still turns to it instinctively, even when prices are high. But it also highlights the need for smarter domestic habits around reuse and recycling.

That is why the conversation is no longer only about how much India imports. It is also about how India can use its existing stock more efficiently. In that broader shift, brands like Tanishq are important because they help make exchanges feel credible, visible and fair, which is exactly what this market has needed for a long time.

Source: https://www.business-standard.com/