NEW DELHI (Reuters): In February, India’s gold imports fell 34% compared with the same period last year, as high prices and hopes for a cut in import taxes kept buyers away, news agency NewsRise Financial reported on Monday, citing a government official.

India, the world’s second-biggest consumer of gold, shipped in 36.9 tonnes of gold in February while overseas purchases of the metal surged 20.5 percent to 941.1 tonnes, in the 11 months to February, it said.

The central government in its Budget for 2016-17 reintroduced a local sales tax on gold jewellery after a gap of four years, on top of record import duty, to curb the local appetite for the precious metal.

India’s gold demand in the March quarter is likely to drop by about two-thirds from a year ago to its lowest in seven years, as higher prices and a strike by jewellers curbed sales in the country.