Gold imports contract 80% to $973 million

Gold imports dipped for the second consecutive month in March, falling by 80.48 per cent to $972.96 million, which is expected to keep a lid on the country’s current account deficit. The sliding prices of the precious metal in both global and domestic markets are seen as a contributory factor for the plunge. Gold imports stood at $4.98 billion in March 2015. The contraction in the imports helped narrow trade deficit to five-year low of $5.07 billion last month. The deficit was at $11.39 billion in the year-ago period.