A gold sale post is seen on Facebook. Photo by Read/Quynh Trang
A gold shortage at jewelry stores is causing retail investors to buy and sell the precious metal on social media, raising concerns about a growing black market.
Thu of HCMC recently sold five taels of gold rings at VND88 million (US$3,465.25) each on Facebook, 1.14% more than the price she would have got at the Saigon Jewelry Company.
Some groups on social media for trading gold bars and rings have more than 65,000 members and dozens of posts a day.
Most sellers post asking prices VND1-3 million higher than the market rate. There has been a surge in unofficial gold trading since prices jumped to their highest since May.
Gold bullion prices now hover around VND89 million per tael of 37.5 grams or 1.2 ounces, up 16% since the beginning of the year.
There have been plenty of complaints about people having trouble buying from the four state-owned lenders (Agribank, VietinBank, Vietcombank, and BIDV) and the Saigon Jewelry Company, who often plead lack of stocks.
They often limit buyers to one or two taels each, and people customers struggle to buy online due to large demand.
Huynh Trung Khanh, deputy chairman of the Vietnam Gold Traders Association, said the supply shortage is why consumers buy on social media, and this threatens to create a black market.
They themselves face a risk since the quality of the gold they buy is not guaranteed, he added.
Increasing supply would resolve the issue, and so the government should either resume its production of gold bars or import from other countries, he said.
Trading gold without a license is punishable with a fine of VND10-20 million.
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