This year’s Dhanteras, celebrated on October 18 2025, saw Indian consumers spend an estimated ₹1 lakh crore across categories — marking one of the strongest festival spending spurts in recent years.
What’s Driving the Surge in Dhanteras 2025 Spending
- A large share of the spending (~₹60,000 crore) was on gold and silver, according to the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT).
- Gold prices soared to around ₹1,30,000 per 10 grams, and silver climbed to roughly ₹1,80,000 per kg, prompting buyers to invest despite elevated costs.
- Beyond jewellery and bullion, significant spending also occurred on household items:
- Utensils and kitchenware: ~₹15,000 crore
- Electronics & electrical goods: ~₹10,000 crore
- Decorative items and religious puja-goods: ~₹3,000 crore
- Favorable factors:
- Reduced GST rates on select goods helped make big-ticket festive purchases more attractive.
- The “buy Indian/local” sentiment (including the campaign around Narendra Modi’s “Swadeshi Aapnao”) was cited as boosting domestic buying.
- Regional hotspots: For example, in Delhi’s bullion market alone, sales crossed ~₹10,000 crore.
What This Means for the Economy & Retail Sector
- Strong consumer confidence: Despite high gold and silver prices, consumers were willing to spend, signalling a robust festive mood and economic confidence.
- Retail boost: Jewellery, home-goods, electronics and other retailers experienced high footfall and sales — a positive sign for the broader retail ecosystem.
- Investment behaviour: Precious metals continue to act as a preferred investment/saving vehicle for many Indian households, especially during auspicious occasions.
- Supply chain & tax implications: The GST cuts and local manufacturing push may be catalysing higher volume of purchases in categories previously more modest in scale.
- Inflation & price risk: While spending is high in value terms, some reports note that volumes (especially for gold) have dropped due to high unit prices — raising questions about sustainable demand.
Some Nuances to Watch
- Although value of spending is elevated, gold sales volume declined by ~10-15% year-on-year as buyers shifted to lighter jewellery or silver due to high gold rates.
- Some cities saw moderating footfall: For example, in Noida, jewellery footfall dropped ~30% while value rose due to higher prices. The Times of India
- The estimate (₹1 lakh crore) is based on trader-body preliminary data and may evolve as more detailed numbers emerge.
Why Dhanteras 2025 Is a Landmark Year
This year stands out because:
- It combines high festive sentiment with favourable macro factors (GST cuts, good monsoon/consumption outlook)
- Gold and silver rates hit record highs, yet demand remained strong — a contrast to some previous seasons where high prices dampened sales
- Spending breadth extended beyond bullion into household goods, electronics and other segments, suggesting a more generalised festive retail boom
