It's bullion market for investors

CHANDIGARH: With the gold prices reaching new heights each day, the investors in the city are finding it more lucrative to invest in gold instead of the stock market.
The Chandigarh bullion market started December 31 last year after the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) authorised the National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX), an electronic multi-commodity exchange to enable customers to trade in gold and silver futures in the city.
"This market now caters to a different segment and has a new class of investors who feel the risk factors are much lesser compared to the stock market," said Mathura Das, a retired manager of Cotton Corporation of India, who has invested in gold along with other commodities.
Das, however, said that activity at the 47-day-old needs to pick up. The brokers feel that the bullion market volumes are three to four times higher than the stock market which is why they have gained their attention as well.
"Gold is the flavour of the current times. At a time, when the price of the yellow metal is smartly gaining strength by the day on the physical market, the broker community is increasing their user-friendly facilities for investors," said V K Joshi, a broker in the city.
"India with a physical market of Rs 800 crore has a potential for futures trading volume of around 40 times which is Rs 32,000 crore per annum. If one invests in the bullion market, they are safer, as they is no volatility here as compared to the stock market," said Joshi.
V Kumar, another broker said in the domestic market, to facilitate trading, NCDEX has kept unit of trading as well as unit of delivery of gold at 100 gms and will trade only in gold and silver with.999 finesse (purest quality).
Besides gold and silver, now trading can also be done on commodities, both agro and non-agro like cotton, palm oil and soya beans. Soon futures trading in rice and wheat will also start, said Kumar.
An investor can also actually buy gold/silver either in the electronic mode or physically for a minimum of 1 kilogram for gold, while it is 30 kg for silver, adds Kumar.