The wedding season is considered the best time for gold jewellers but with the yellow metal soaring to a record nearly Rs 18,000 per ten gm, city jewellers have reported a 25 per cent drop in demand.

Even those reaching out to jewellery showrooms at the peak of the marriage season are putting a cap on their purchases, jewellers rued.

They said soaring prices have adversely affected their business as demand for ornaments has witnessed a fall by at least 25 per cent this season.

During the course of the year, the marriage season tends to be at its peak from mid-November to February, barring a few weeks in December with over 25,000 marriages scheduled during the period in Delhi only.

On the recent hike in gold prices, an official at state-run trading firm MMTC said, "While jewellery buying is low, there is a positive influence in buying of gold coins and bars. People are investing more in solid gold expecting the market will rise further and they would be able to get good returns for their investments."

Market watchers believe that high prices are due to an unprecedented rush of investors into the bullion market, as also high global prices.

The city's leading gold retailers in Chandni Chowk and Karol Bagh said they are flooded with requests for cheaper necklaces, rings, earrings and bangles.

"Till last year, people used to give 10 or 15 tolas (100 or 150 gm) of jewellery to the prospective brides, but now they are buying only after deciding the amount of money they will spend on ornaments," said Nitin Malik, owner of Malik Jewellers Pvt Ltd, an MMTC franchise here.

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