More than 4500 goldsmith and jewelries shut down in Iran

Tehran’s president of Gold industry, Mohammad Kashti-Ara revealed that more than 4,500 goldsmith and jewelries have been shut down in Tehran and other cities during past two years.
A top dealer in the jewelry business cited Kashti-Ara as saying on Thursday, Dec. 15, that the gold industry president has acknowledged that production and consumption of gold in the country has reduced to one-third during past five years. He added that the reason behind this is government mismanagement of this commodity and the worsening the economy.
In the capital Tehran alone more than 750 shops have been shut-down and about 3,800 more stores in other cities. This figure does not include those who have transferred to other type of businesses.
With %9 added tax on gold products, the jewelers and goldsmiths are facing a back breaking recession resulting in less appetite for gold.