Gold prices continue to fluctuate, with "buying gold" and "gold trading" becoming a craze in the gold consumption market.

Since 2026, the gold market has continued to experience intense, volatile swings. Gold prices have repeatedly played out a “roller coaster” pattern—rising rapidly from around $4,300 per ounce at the beginning of the year to above $5,500, before recently oscillating and falling back to around $4,700. With prices fluctuating dramatically, some people take advantage of gold price pullbacks to “buy the dip” and snap up gold bars, while others calmly purchase “one-price” gold jewelry. Still others walk into gold-refining and remaking shops to revamp old gold. “Buying gold” and “remaking gold” are becoming a hot trend in today’s gold consumption market.

At the investment gold bar counter of Beijing Caishikou Department Store (“Caishiba Mall,” for short) last weekend, the place was packed with people. Mr. Liu is holding a 10-gram gold bar he just bought at the counter, with a smile on his face. Mr. Liu said that a few days ago gold prices were “so high they were scary.” At one point, investment gold prices reached more than 1,200 yuan per gram. He had been afraid to make a move, but “these two days the price has finally come down some. Now it’s about 900-plus yuan per gram to just over 1,000 yuan, which is still a reasonable deal.” Mr. Liu added that if the price is more suitable in a few days, he will buy some more.

Unlike Mr. Liu’s “wait-and-see” holding style, Ms. Wang appears especially decisive. She told reporters, “With gold prices being reasonable these past two days, I’ll stock up more. Then when prices go up again later, I’ll sell and make the difference.” She believes that “gold (prices) will definitely rise sharply in the future.” As she was speaking, she had already called on the mall staff to purchase 60 grams of gold bars.

Consumers like Mr. Liu and Ms. Wang are not uncommon. A counter manager at Caishiba Mall told reporters that, with gold prices swinging violently lately, the number of customers coming to buy investment gold bars has clearly increased. “These past two days, we’ve already replenished the counter several times, and it’s still in short supply.”

Under the turmoil in gold prices, “one-price” gold jewelry has attracted a lot of young consumers. At a store of Chaohongji in Beijing, Ms. Zhao is picking out jewelry. She said, “‘One-price’ jewelry has a higher look and a more worry-free experience. You don’t have to worry about price fluctuations.” The reporter noticed that the “King’s Pudding Dog” lucky charm she bought that day weighs only 0.7 grams, but its price is over 2,100 yuan.

A sales staff member at Chaohongji told reporters that currently, “one-price” gold jewelry accounts for more than 60% of the store’s offerings. “Right now, many young people buying gold jewelry first look at the design and the symbolism, and only then consider gram weight and value for money.” She said that “‘one-price’ products are more oriented toward ‘jewelry consumption,’” and the buyer base clearly shows a younger trend.

Besides “buying gold,” “remaking gold” has also become a new choice for many consumers. Lin, the person in charge of a gold-remaking shop in Beijing’s Sanlitun, told reporters that since late March, the volume of the shop’s business of receiving customers’ old gold for processing has increased noticeably. Customers who come to consult and place orders are mostly young consumers, who tend to prefer customized designs and popular styles.

Mr. Lin explained that the basic labor fee to remake a piece of gold jewelry ranges between 20 and 60 yuan per gram. For more complex craftsmanship—such as intangible cultural heritage filigree work and hand-engraving—the labor fees vary from several tens of yuan to over a hundred yuan. “Many consumers feel that, since gold prices are fluctuating so much, buying new pieces doesn’t make sense. They take their old gold and modify the style. Pay some labor fees, and they can get something that feels new,” he said. “The booming ‘remaking gold’ business actually reflects that consumption has become more rational. People value the intrinsic value of gold more.”

Qui Rui, Senior Deputy General Director of the Research and Development Department at Oriental Jincheng, pointed out that lately, gold prices have fallen noticeably from their previous highs, triggering consumers’ “buy-the-dip” mentality and a “discount-style” impulse to buy goods. Meanwhile, the “remaking gold” model lowers costs significantly by adopting a “base gold + lower labor fee” approach, and it also aligns better with young people’s rational consumption and demand for personalized customization.

Zhao Qingming, Deputy Director of the Research Institute of Hui Guan, believes that with gold prices falling and some institutions’ bullish expectations driving activity, it is understandable that some consumers purchase gold with a “buy-the-dip” mindset. However, they must still remain wary of blindly optimistic thinking. He noted that at present, the gold price level is seriously overestimated, and there is still a possibility of further pullbacks.

On investment advice, Qui Rui said investors need to distinguish between “just-needed” demand and “investment” demand, and focus on controlling the premium cost. “If it’s mainly for just-needed consumption,” he suggested, “investors may prioritize bank investment gold bars with relatively lower premiums. If the purpose is investment, then you can deploy in batches during the pullback phase.”

Zhao Qingming advised that investors should establish risk-control mechanisms and should not rely on luck. They should not hold onto the so-called idea of “trading time for space,” and especially those attempting to “buy the dip” should do their best to set stop-loss measures. (Reporter Ni Zhangzhuo)

(Editor: Wen Jing)

Keywords:

                                                            gold prices
                                                            gold