Discounts and i-Sinar money spark gold rush in Shah Alam

 

Customers looking at jewelry at Miezza goldsmith at PKNS Complex in Shah Alam today.

SHAH ALAM: There’s a gold rush at the popular PKNS Complex shopping centre. The queues snaked across the ground floor, couples chatting with each other, families trying to keep their children from running around, while a few men gazed at their smartphones while passing the time.

With the three goldsmiths at the mall offering discounts on gold items, everyone knew they were in for a long wait.

“It’s like this every day because these shops are offering these low prices,” said one prospective customer, Mohd Aidilzhar Anzir, outside Aiman goldsmith.

“The price of 916 gold was around RM240-RM250 per gram in December, but this shop is now selling it for RM230. Now is a good time to invest in gold and I am looking to purchase a chain,” he said.He said some of those in the queue might be using withdrawals from their EPF i-Sinar scheme to purchase gold.

Nik Zaini Peei (left) and Mohd Aidilzhar Anzir were among eager customers waiting to buy gold chains at PKNS Complex in Shah Alam today.

Among them was Nik Zaini Peei, 32. who was also thinking of buying a chain. “I got some money from my i-Sinar withdrawal so I’m using that to invest in gold,” he said. “There were also a lot of people in (goldsmiths in) Section 24, so I expected there would be a lot of people here as well,” he said, adding that prices were normally higher at other malls.

The government recently removed criteria for withdrawals under the Employees Provident Fund’s i-Sinar scheme, which started payouts on Tuesday.

The EPF now allows its members with a balance of less than RM100,000 in Account 1 to withdraw a maximum of RM10,000 while those with more than RM100,000 in Account 1 can withdraw a maximum of RM60,000.

Shsha Jewels director Wan Shaifuddin Wan Ahmad outside his shop at PKNS Complex in Shah Alam today.

According to a survey by a UCSI polling centre last month, nearly half of those in the upper-income group said they would use i-Sinar money to buy gold and stocks, as did one-third of those in the middle- and lower-income groups.

Goldsmith Wan Shaifuddin Wan Ahmad, director of Shsha Jewels, said he had never seen such long queues in his 25 years in business. A gram of 916 gold is going for RM214 this week, “the lowest price in Shah Alam”.

People queueing up to buy gold at the Miezza goldsmith at PKNS Complex in Shah Alam today.

He said: “Business has been up by 50%. I think it’s a good sign for the economy and shows that there’s an increase in consumer confidence. People know that gold is a stable investment as its value does not depreciate.

With gold, customers would get cash on the spot if they decided to sell, unlike property or stocks, he said. - FMT