New Delhi, Jan 21 : Gold prices, which crashed by 28 percent in 2013, are expected to touch a high of Rs. 33,000 ($532) per 10 grams this year, a bullion market operator said.

Riddhi Siddhi Bullions Limited (RSBL) Managing Director Prithviraj Kothari said the average price of gold in the current year is expected to be around Rs. 28,000 per 10 gram.

According to Kothari, gold may slip to a low of Rs. 25,000 per 10 gram in 2014.

"The average base price for gold in 2014 is expected to be $1375 an ounce.  In the domestic market gold is expected to move in a range of Rs. 25,000 to Rs. 33,000 per 10 gram and the average base price for the same is expected to be around Rs. 28,000," he said.

He said the average base price for silver is expected to be around $2,500 per kg, while the average base price for silver in the domestic market is expected to be around Rs. 45,000 per kg.

Trade range for silver is expected to be Rs. 37,000 to Rs. 55,000 per kg, he said.

Kothari-led firm RSBL deals in bullion, specialising in bars and coins of various precious metals like gold, silver and platinum.

Ending a 12-year of bull run, gold price slumped by 28 percent in 2013, the sharpest annual decline since 1981.

Gold demands in India remained subdued due to a series of measures taken by the government and the central bank to discourage investments in gold, in a bid to control the current account deficit, that rose to a record nearly $88 billion in 2012-13.

The current account deficit is expected to decline below $50 billion in the current financial year ending March 31.

Kothari pointed out that gold has witnessed a significant bear market since reaching a record high at $1,910 an ounce in 2011.

Some say the no. '13', considered unlucky by many, has proved to be inauspicious for gold too, he remarked.

"But over the years, gold has always enjoyed the status of safe haven asset.  History of Gold equals to an object that has always been used as a hedge against inflation.  At any point in time, gold is proportional to a store of wealth that can be used for monetary purposes," he added.

Referring to services offered by his company, Kothari said: "The penchant for accumulating gold is a deep-rooted Indian trait where gold is symbol of trust and our services are designed to cater to that trust."

Founded in 1994, RSBL holds the largest variety of bullions and coins across India.

RSBL recently launched a symbol on its spot exchange system to deliver .916 purity gold bangles or chains, approximately 1 kg in weight. `RSBL SPOT' offers innovative and lucrative offerings that not only include bullion, but also jewellery.

The electronic over-the-counter (OTC) bullion trading system boasts of transparent benchmark pricing and has more than 3,000 online clients and numerous delivery centres across India.

Kothari elaborated: "Over-the-counter bullion trading is one of the most popular investment tools in the global financial market.  If you want to invest in bullion, you can choose to invest in OTC Bullion Trading without paying full amount of the contract value.  You can effectively seize opportunities with the leveraging effect."(IANS)