YGEA gold reference price set lower to K3.6 mln per tical

Following a dip in spot gold prices, the Yangon Gold Entrepreneurs Association (YGEA) has reduced the pure gold price to K3.6144 million per tical (0.578 ounce, or 0.016 kilogramme).
The current spot gold price is approximately US$2,010 per tical.
On 5 December, the Central Bank of Myanmar (CBM) permitted authorized dealers (private banks) to freely engage in online forex trading at a market rate determined by supply and demand market forces.
This move by the CBM resulted in a narrowing gap between the YGEA’s reference price and the actual market value. Pure gold is currently being traded at K3.77 million per tical in the domestic market, indicating a price difference of K150,000 per tical from the YGEA’s reference rate.
Previously, the gap between them had widened to K400,000-K500,000 per tical as the YGEA used the interbank transaction rate set by the CBM to calculate the reference price for pure gold.
Currently, the US dollar is exchanged at K3,450 in the over-the-counter market. When the Kyat depreciated to K4,000 against the greenback in the forex market, the gold price peaked at K4 million per tical in late August 2023. — NN/EM