India's Gold Imports Fall 81% and Silver Imports Drop 49% in September After Duty Hike

Key facts

• India's gold imports fell 81.27% year-on-year to $1.8 billion in September 2026, declining for the second consecutive month, according to Commerce Ministry trade data released on October 15, 2026.
• Silver imports fell 49.11% year-on-year to $665.08 million in September, also contracting for the second consecutive month.
• The government raised the import duty on precious metals from 6% to 15%, effective May 13.
• During April-September 2026-27, gold imports declined 27.32% year-on-year to $19.27 billion and silver imports fell 25.17% to $2.4 billion.
• Gold accounts for more than 5% of India's total imports, and India is the world's second-largest gold consumer after China.
• Switzerland is the largest source of India's gold imports at about 40%, followed by the United Arab Emirates at more than 16% and South Africa at about 10%.
• India's total imports from Switzerland fell 74.63% year-on-year to $893.2 million in September.