Gold rate today in Cebu (PHP)

Cebu gold rate at a glance

At the last update, one gram of 24k gold in Cebu works out to about 8,201 PHP, and a gram of 22k to about 7,518 PHP. Per 10 grams, a common size for small bars and rate boards, that is about 82,015 PHP for 24k. These are spot-based figures, before any tax, premium or making charge. Cebu is the commercial centre of the Visayas, and much of its gold trade is resale through pawnshops rather than new jewellery.

What moves the gold price in Cebu

Two numbers set the gold price in Cebu: the international price in US dollars, about $4,007.9 per ounce at the last update, and the USD/PHP exchange rate, now 63.648. The peso floats and is supported by large remittance inflows from Filipinos working abroad. When the peso weakens, the local gold price rises even with no change in New York, and remittance-heavy months such as December can affect the currency as well.

The dollar price itself responds to US interest-rate expectations, the strength of the dollar, inflation data, central-bank buying and geopolitical risk. Our guide to what moves gold prices covers each in turn.

Premiums, making charges and tax in Cebu

The shelf price in Cebu is higher than the converted figure above. A shop adds the shop's margin, workmanship on jewellery and VAT where it applies. On jewellery, making charges are included in the per-gram price, which varies widely between malls, jewellery towns and pawnshops, so two pieces of the same weight and purity can carry very different prices. 18k is the most common jewellery purity; 21k and 22k 'Saudi gold' brought home from the Gulf is widely traded; 24k is sold as bars.

Where gold is bought in Cebu

Jewellers in downtown Cebu City around Colon Street, the malls and the many pawnshops are the main places to buy and sell gold. When comparing shops, ask for the gold rate per gram, the purity, the making charge and the buy-back price separately; that is the only way to see which offer is really cheaper.

Buying seasons in Cebu

Christmas and the Sinulog festival season in January, weddings and the return of overseas workers drive demand. Across the Philippines, demand is strongest around the long Christmas season, weddings and the months when overseas workers come home. Seasonal demand tends to show up in shop premiums, promotions and queues rather than in the international price, which is set by global flows. Knowing the calendar helps explain why a local quote can look expensive or cheap against this page in a given week.

Gold market hours in Cebu

The international gold market trades almost around the clock on weekdays. In Cebu the London–New York overlap, usually the busiest and most volatile part of the day, runs today from about 20:00–00:00 local time. The two LBMA Gold Price auctions in London, at 10:30 and 15:00 London time, fall at 17:30 and 22:00 in Cebu, and major US data released at 08:30 New York time, such as payrolls and inflation, lands at 20:30 local time. The week's trading closes at 05:00 on Saturday and reopens at 07:00 on Monday, Cebu time; over the weekend the price on this page is the last close. The central bank buys gold from small-scale miners, and pawnshops are a major channel for selling and pledging gold jewellery. Our gold market hours tool shows the sessions in any time zone.

Cebu compared with Manila

Cebu and Manila both price gold in PHP off the same international price and the same exchange rate, so the converted figure is identical: about 8,201 PHP per gram of 24k in both. Any difference at the counter comes from making charges, dealer premiums and how hard the shops compete.

How this PHP gold price is calculated

Three numbers decide everything on this page. First, the international gold price in US dollars per troy ounce: $4,007.9 at the last update. Second, the exchange rate: 1 USD = 63.648 PHP. Third, the weight: one troy ounce is 31.1035 grams, and one tola is 11.6638 grams.

1. Price per gram in USD = $4,007.9 ÷ 31.1035 = $128.86.
2. Price per gram in PHP = $128.86 × 63.648 = 8,201 PHP (24k, pure gold).
3. Price per 10 grams = 8,201 × 10 = 82,015 PHP.
4. For a lower purity, multiply by the fineness: 22k = 0.9167, 21k = 0.875, 18k = 0.750.

The gold price comes from COMEX gold futures, which track spot XAUUSD closely but are not identical to it. The exchange rate is a mid-market rate; the rate your bank or money changer gives you will be slightly different. If you want to do the maths yourself, our guide to converting the gold price per gram, tola and kilo walks through every step with worked examples.

What this price does not include

The figures above are the international spot price converted into local currency. They are the starting point for every retail price in Cebu, but they are not the price you will pay or receive at a shop. The retail or "jeweller" price adds some or all of these on top:

• Import duty or customs charges, where the country imports most of its gold.
• Sales tax, GST or VAT, which may apply to jewellery, to bars and coins, or to both, depending on local law.
• Dealer premium: the margin a bullion dealer or bank adds to the spot price for bars and coins, usually larger on small pieces.
• Making charges (labour) on jewellery, often a percentage of the gold value or a fixed amount per gram.
• Local supply and demand, which can push the physical price to a premium or a discount against the international price for weeks at a time.

When you sell, the buyer usually quotes below the spot-based number and deducts for purity testing, wear and sometimes stones. The gap between the buying and the selling price is the real cost of owning physical gold, and it varies a lot between shops, so it is worth asking several.

Frequently asked questions