Mumbai: India’s gold buyers trickled into shops on Thursday to pick up bargains after prices fell below the keenly watched Rs15,000 level, dealers said.

“Today there are good volumes and enquiries are pouring in as well,” said a dealer with a private bank in Mumbai.

The benchmark June gold contract was 0.91% lower at Rs14,950 per 10 grams at 1:41pm, about 6.7% down from its record 20 February high of Rs16,040.

“Some deals are going on at the moment, and even the strong rupee is helping gold demand,” said a dealer with IndusInd Bank.

A strong rupee makes the dollar-quoted asset cheaper.

The Indian rupee rose to its highest in more than a month on Thursday after a surge in local stocks boosted hopes for foreign portfolio inflows, while the dollar’s weakness abroad also helped.

A further correction, coupled with a strong rupee, may boost demand in the wedding season that starts from mid-April, dealers said.

“Big orders are there in the range of $901-908 (an ounce),” said the dealer with IndusInd Bank, referring to levels seen in mid-March.

“We expect wedding buying to come in if prices fall further.”