Gold rally lifts household wealth to new highs

Indian household gold holdings have surged to nearly $5 trillion, propelled by a sharp rise in prices, a Kotak report shows. Gold has emerged as a dominant non-property asset class for households, outpacing the growth of equities and deposits. Households earning below ₹5 lakh hold nearly 70% of India’s gold stock. Despite the recent surge in gold loan portfolios, such loans account for only about 5% of total lending, reflecting gold’s underutilisation as a productive financial asset. India’s net...