Bangladesh's Gold Price Falls Again to Tk224,182 a Bhori as BAJUS Cuts for a Second Day Running

Bangladesh's gold market had barely settled from one price cut when another one landed. The Bangladesh Jewellers Association, known as BAJUS, lowered the price of 22-carat gold by Tk2,158 on Friday, bringing it down to Tk224,182 a bhori, effective from 10am that day. It was the second reduction in as many days and the third change to the price of gold in the country so far this month, a pace that has left jewellers and buyers alike struggling to keep track.

• 22-carat gold fell Tk2,158 to Tk224,182 a bhori, effective October 23
• It is the second BAJUS price cut in two consecutive days
• 21-carat, 18-carat and traditional gold all dropped as well
• BAJUS pointed to a decline in the price of tejabi, or pure, gold in the domestic market
• Prices remain well below the record highs set back in January

The new price, in full

BAJUS revises its rates based on the price of tejabi gold in the local bullion market, and Friday's notice cut all four grades it tracks. Here is where things stand after the latest adjustment.

Gold type	New price (per bhori)	Change
22-carat	Tk224,182	down Tk2,158
21-carat	Tk214,093	down Tk2,099
18-carat	Tk183,883	down Tk1,808
Traditional (Sonaton)	Tk150,232	down Tk1,458

A bhori is 11.664 grams, the unit jewellers across Bangladesh use to price gold, and all the figures above already include VAT. Silver prices were not revised in the same notice.

Why the price keeps sliding

BAJUS gave a narrow explanation for the move, tying it directly to the domestic bullion trade rather than to any single global event.

The adjustment was made "in response to a decline in the price of pure gold, locally known as tejabi gold, in the domestic market," BAJUS said in its price notice.

That is a more modest reason than the swings jewellers were citing earlier in the year, when a record global rally pushed Bangladesh's gold price to an all time high. Since then, bullion has cooled off internationally, and BAJUS has been adjusting its domestic rate almost in step, sometimes lifting it and sometimes cutting it within the same week. The association reviews prices continuously rather than on a fixed schedule, which is why buyers in Dhaka's gold markets have seen the rate move several times within a single month.

A month of whiplash

Friday's cut is the latest point on a choppy line. Twenty-two carat gold started October at Tk228,031, climbed briefly, then came down twice in quick succession, first to Tk226,340 on October 22 and now to Tk224,182 a day later.

The pattern is not new this year. Bangladesh's gold price has swung by thousands of taka within single weeks on several occasions since the summer, cutting one day and rising the next as BAJUS tracks both the international bullion rate and the taka's exchange value, since gold is imported and priced in dollars before it reaches the local market.

What it means for you

For a household buying jewellery for a wedding or for Eid, a Tk2,158 drop on a single bhori of 22-carat gold is real money, roughly the cost of a modest family dinner out. Anyone planning a purchase in the coming days may want to watch for one more cut before committing, though BAJUS could just as easily reverse course the way it has done repeatedly this year.

For savers who hold gold as a store of value rather than jewellery, the message is less about catching the bottom and more about recognising that gold in Bangladesh has become a genuinely volatile asset over the past year, not the steady hedge it is often assumed to be. Anyone comparing gold against other options, such as a fixed deposit or a savings certificate, can check current rates using BD Financial Review's gold price tracker and run the numbers against a bank's offer with the FDR and DPS calculator before deciding where to park their money.

What to watch next

Two things will decide where BAJUS moves next. The first is the international bullion price, which has been unsettled since its record run earlier in the year. The second is domestic demand, which typically firms up as the wedding season and festive buying periods approach, giving jewellers less room to pass on further cuts even if the price of tejabi gold keeps easing. For now, Bangladesh's gold market remains in a holding pattern of small cuts and small rises, with no clear signal yet of which direction will win out.