Enab Baladi, Odai al-Haj Hussin
Global gold markets are seeing sharp swings and record highs, while Syrians are left baffled by how quickly local prices rise when global prices climb, and how slowly they fall when the on screen global price drops.
This gap is not just numbers on paper. It has turned into daily frustration inside gold shops, where people ask: Why does gold fall globally but not locally at the same pace? And why do some jewelers refuse to sell at certain times?
Manipulation and refusal to sell
Citizens’ stories share a common theme, a market that seems to operate by unbalanced rules.
Enab Baladi collected testimonies that point to practices that add to people’s burdens amid a grinding economic crisis.
Amira, a resident of Aleppo, told Enab Baladi: “When we go to buy gold, they calculate it based on the local price, which is higher than the global price. But when we want to sell, they calculate it based on the global price.”
This practice, which residents describe as “monopolization,” leaves them with no chance of getting fair value for the gold they own, whether it is savings or jewelry.
Nisreen Sheikh, a resident of Tartus, highlighted other practices. “In Latakia, jewelers sell worn, second hand gold at the price of new gold, and without writing the gram price on the invoice.”
Nisreen told Enab Baladi that some jewelers refuse to provide the “jeweler’s receipt” on the pretext that it is subject to a tax, depriving buyers of proof of ownership and the purchase price. This, she said, opens the door to fraud and lack of accountability.
Other testimonies describe jewelers refusing to sell when prices spike suddenly.
One woman, who asked not to be named, told Enab Baladi: “I wanted to buy a gold lira. He set a price that was hugely inflated compared with the local market, and when I asked him to lower it, he got angry and said: I have no gold for sale.”
Another woman said: “I sold a house I inherited, and I wanted to buy a gold necklace with that money, but the jeweler refused to sell because the gold price was rising and unstable at the time.”
Yasser, a resident of Damascus, gave a detailed numerical example of the problems in the gold market. He told Enab Baladi: “I bought gold some time ago. The global ounce price was $4,900 before the rise, and the price of a 21 karat gram was $136. Today, the ounce price is also $4,900, but the gram price is $145, and the gap between selling and buying is $5, making it $150 per gram.”
Yasser added: “I asked the jeweler why. He said: This is our hedging because of price fluctuations and fear it could jump suddenly,” justifying it by saying that “the mining companies we import from do not lock the price for us. He said this is not only in Syria, it is in Egypt, Lebanon, and Turkey too.”
Lack of oversight
“If we want to file a complaint about gold prices, the concerned body would be the Jewelers Association itself, and it is the one that sets the prices we are complaining about,” Abdullah, a resident of Damascus, said, summarizing what he sees as the core problem and linking it to a lack of effective oversight.
Ali al-Zein, also from Damascus, told Enab Baladi: “Manipulation happens openly. The association protects jewelers who already set prices above the official rate. When gold rises globally, they raise the price automatically. When it drops globally, they do not lower it until two days later or more. The problem is worse because they charge 300,000 Syrian pounds (about $26) per gram as workmanship, with no oversight.”
The jewelers’ view, supply constraints and hedging
Against the citizens’ complaints, jewelers offer a different narrative focused on logistical and economic challenges, and they try to rebut accusations of individual price manipulation.
Jeweler Ihsan al-Zuhri, from Aleppo, gave a detailed explanation for the price gap, saying the local price does not follow the global “screen” automatically or in a simplistic way. He said gold entering the local market carries a “fixed global markup” at supply hubs such as Dubai, Turkey, and Kurdistan, estimated at $5,000 per kilogram of 24 karat raw gold.
Al-Zuhri told Enab Baladi there are high logistical costs due to difficult routes and the lack of direct official importing. He said delivering one kilogram of manufactured gold from Turkey into Syria costs around $1,500 in road fees and insurance.
Workshops also charge fixed fees (manufacturing costs) for minting ounces and bullion bars.
Al-Zuhri said the jeweler is an “implementer,” not a “decision maker” on prices, and is bound by the pricing issued by the Jewelers Association, which is updated in real time through specialized platforms to standardize prices across all governorates.
He explained that some jewelers’ refusal to sell is a “preventive measure” to protect capital. When prices jump rapidly, the jeweler fears selling at the old price and then being unable to replace the same weight of gold at the new price.
Another jeweler in Damascus, who asked not to be named, added another angle. He told Enab Baladi: “The Jewelers Association sets the gram price. As for the difference between the global and local price, the reason is strong local demand for gold. Also, global mining companies have currently halted gold supplies because of price volatility.”
He argued that a price gap is natural, asking: “How can we sell gold when we cannot guarantee we will be able to replace it from the importer at a suitable price?”
Official analysis, “safety margin” and mandatory costs
Musab al-Aswad, director general of the General Authority for the Management of Precious Metals, explained the price gap to Enab Baladi, saying global instability forces exceptional “protection” measures.
Al-Aswad described what he called “excess protective measures,” noting that gold can see global fluctuations of up to $10 up or down in a single day. In such instability, any seller sets a “safety margin” in pricing to protect capital from sudden shocks.
He said this hedging also benefits citizens when they sell, because jewelers commit to buying gold from the public at a price higher than the global price, with a margin of $3 to $4, “to absorb the current confusion,” according to the director general.
Al-Aswad also used the technical term “taklif” (a mandatory surcharge), explaining that most of the gold available in Syria is imported from the UAE, which imposes a fixed, compulsory increase of about $6 above the global on-screen price for each gram. This cost is imposed by external suppliers, and “the local jeweler has no control over it.”
He criticized what he described as a “demand bubble,” where consumers rush to buy as soon as prices begin rising, pushing local prices higher beyond global logic. He warned against relying solely on “Google” prices, stressing that each market has its own dynamics and supply and demand rules.
“The frenzied rush to buy is what creates the bubble. Calm and patience are the key to narrowing the price gap,” al-Aswad said.
He added that the authority deals firmly with any documented complaint submitted through the jewelers’ associations, whether it involves overcharging, fraud, or failure to comply with the official pricing, stressing: “We will not hesitate to hold any jeweler accountable if proven to have exploited citizens.”
Jewelers’ explanations and oversight questions as gold price gap stirs anger Enab Baladi.
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