24K Gold Prices in India Surge 63% in a Year

Mumbai, May 23: Gold prices in India rose sharply over the year amid a broader flight to safety, with 24-karat gold climbing from ₹9,791 per gram on May 22, 2025 to ₹15,949 per gram on May 22, 2026, an increase of about 62.9%. The advance was driven by persistent Middle East tensions, sustained central bank gold buying, and growing concern over energy-market disruption, especially around the Strait of Hormuz.

The rise in the second half of 2025 reflected repeated escalations in the wider US-Iran and Israel-Iran confrontations, while early 2026 saw further support from renewed threats of escalation, intermittent diplomatic efforts, and market fears that regional instability could spill into global trade and inflation. 

The journey began in May 2025 at relatively stable levels, with 24K gold at ₹9,791, 22K at ₹8,975 and 18K at ₹7,344 — prices that, while elevated by historical Indian standards, reflected a market still absorbing the post-pandemic normalisation of inflation expectations and US Federal Reserve policy.

The summer months of June and July 2025 brought only modest movement, with 24K gold nudging to ₹10,075 in June and ₹10,129 in July as commodity markets digested mixed global growth signals and a relatively calm Middle East. 

The real inflection came in September 2025, when gold jumped sharply to ₹11,307 per gram for 24K — a month-on-month surge of over ₹1,178 from August’s ₹10,053. The trigger was a combination of escalating tensions in the Middle East and a decisive pivot by global central banks toward accelerated gold accumulation as dollar-reserve diversification gathered pace.

October 2025 carried the momentum further, with 24K gold touching ₹12,589 as the first confirmed military exchanges between US and Israeli forces and Iranian-backed militia units sent safe-haven demand surging. 

November and December 2025 consolidated those gains, with 24K gold holding at ₹12,584 in November before a sharp year-end rally took it to ₹13,615 in December as the full scale of the US-Iran military conflict — Operation Epic Fury — became clear to global markets and the Strait of Hormuz faced its first serious threat of closure. 

January 2026 marked another step-change, with 24K gold leaping to ₹15,431 as the Strait of Hormuz closure disrupted an estimated 20% of global energy supply, triggering simultaneous spikes in crude, gold and silver as investors hedged against the prospect of prolonged supply disruption and imported inflation.

February 2026 saw the metal reach ₹15,928 — its highest point of the year before a March correction to ₹14,597 as early peace talks between Washington and Tehran, brokered through Pakistan, briefly raised hopes of a negotiated end to the conflict. 

The correction proved short-lived. April 2026 saw prices recover to ₹15,475 as talks stalled, and by May 22, 2026, gold stood at ₹15,949 per gram for 24K — down ₹44 on the day but holding near all-time highs as Trump’s threat of fresh strikes on Iran and the ongoing Strait of Hormuz disruption kept the safe-haven bid firmly in place. 

Table showing the monthly 24K, 22K and 18K gold prices (per gram) over the past year: 

24K gold has risen ₹6,158 per gram — or nearly 63% — in twelve months, with a brief dip in March 2026 before resuming its climb. The sharpest single-month jump came between August and September 2025, when the US-Iran conflict broke out, sending 24K up ₹1,254 per gram in one month. 

Source: goodreturns.in