BUYING GOLD CHEAPLY
China’s middle class is indeed responding to Hainan’s zero-tariff policies, but not by consuming. They’re speculating and arbitraging instead, hoping that the gold price, which has reached a high of US$5,417 per ounce this year, will keep on rising.
Duty-free in this sense is more a commodities floor than a shopping mall.
Social media is flush with tips on how to buy gold cheaply. For instance, on Dec 18, 2025, the day of the tariff-free launch, gold cost 1,177 yuan per gram at Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group’s stores in Hainan, 13 per cent cheaper than the price in Guangzhou.
Buy enough and it’s easy savings, even considering the 1,500 yuan cost of a round-trip air ticket.
The island government has also been offering subsidies, giving out as much as 4,000-yuan consumption vouchers for every 50,000 yuan spent. A 40g plain bracelet, which retailers charge minimum with processing fees, can be 20 per cent cheaper.
But one needs to be fast and vigilant; the coupons run out as soon as they become available online. To be a smart shopper in Hainan, some bloggers joke, one must be good at math and quick with online coupon-clipping.
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