More than 14,000 kg of precious metals stamped last year

Business Saturday 12/January/2019 14:22 PM
By: Times News Service
More than 14,000 kg of precious metals stamped last year

Muscat: The Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI) said that the total quantities of bullion, gold, silver and platinum alloys stamped between January 1 and December 31, 2018, were 14,584 kilograms compared to 12,962 kilograms stamped in 2017.
The Directorate General of Standards and Metrology said that the gold stamped in the precious metals laboratory in the ministry in 2018 was jewellery and related accessories. It included precious and semi-precious stones, precious metals and ordinary metals clad with precious metals and articles of these materials, and natural or industrially produced pearls, in addition to traditional jewellery and coins.
The MoCI plays a major role in monitoring the control of precious metals and stones to curb illegal practices. It also protects consumers and traders from the fraud they are exposed to either from third parties from where they import or the workers of the workshop. It also encourages the precious metals industry and preserves it as part of the heritage of the Sultanate and gets rid of evasion from customs duties.
The MoCI has urged consumers to check if there are Arabic numerals, which symbolise gold jewellery when they go to buy gold, silver or platinum. There are also a number of hallmarks or symbols, which determine the type of work piece—dagger for gold jewellery, balancing scale for silver and burj for platinum.