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India's gold consumption is expected to increase 11% in 2005, because of the lower gold prices and an increase in promotion activities by India Gold Jewelry manufacturers, a senior bullion trader in India told Dow Jones Newswires.

"India's gold consumption will touch 700 tons in 2005, as the gold price is coming down and we are seeing so much advertising of Gold Jewelry," said Suresh Hundia, a prominent bullion trader and former president of the Bombay Bullion Association.

Indian gold consumption was 630 metric tons in 2004. India is the world's largest gold importer and uses 99% of its total gold availability for Gold Jewelry making.

Indian gold sales touched the year's high on Wednesday, as India celebrated Akha Teej festival.

Buying Gold Jewelry is considered auspicious in Akha Teej. This year the gold jewelry buying was phenomenally high because of media hype and advertising by companies," said Hundia.

The demand for gold was so strong during ‘Akshaya Tritiya’ that several traffic jams occured in Hyperbad.

Although Gold Jewelry businesses worked overtime, vehicles were stranded on the arterial roads in Paradise, Begumpet, Panjagutta, Raj Bhavan Road, Basheerbagh, Abids, Dilsukhnagar and several other places.

It took about 40 minutes for commuters to navigate the traffic jams near Amrutha Mall, Panjagutta, which is now a Gold Jewellery hub.

The wide publicity for 'Akshaya Tritiya' by the Gold Jewelery merchants led many to queue up at Gold Jewelery shops in Hyberbad.

Many motorists who could not make it through the traffic jams were seen parking their vehicles and walking to the gold jewellery shops.