High gold prices stopping Kalar couples from getting married

KALAR, Kurdistan Region  — The rising price of gold is preventing couples from getting married, according to people in the town of Kalar. 

"The price of gold is high. We, both families, agreed on buying 25 Mithqals of gold. With the money I had, I could buy this amount at that time. The price of gold quickly increased. Both families are now pushing me to have the wedding as soon as possible, but my fiancee and I agreed on delaying the marriage," one man told Rudaw. 

"We can’t even speak in front of a camera and talk about our issue and make people understand our problems. Poverty has become shameful," he said. 

One mithqal, a measurement in the Islamic world, is equal to 4.25 grams of gold.  

Grooms in the Kurdistan Region traditionally buy gold as gift for their bride.

The amount is mostly agreed upon by their families. 

Gold traders in Kalar say they have a lot less business than usual, with potential buyers waiting for prices to drop. 

"Most of the couples who come here buy 10 to 20 Mithqals of gold. In the past, 20 to 30 couples used to come here every day. It has now reduced to two to four," said Dara Ahmed.

"We used to sell one Mithqal of 24-carat gold for 250,000 IQD ($200)...the same amount of gold is now sold for 360,00 to 370,000 IQD ($288- $296)," he added.

"Nearly 80 percent of those who come here are gold sellers. There are very few buyers, said Hemin Najim. "The price of gold is unstable. It changes in minutes."

 Translation and video editing by Sarkawt Mohammed