ABU DHBAI, Feb 9: Abu Dhabi’s gold sales, hit by last year’s record prices, are slowly recovering as buyers adjust to current high prices, the Gulf emirate’s Gold and Jewellery Group chairman said on Saturday.

The market recovered in January and was unchanged compared to the same period in 2007 ... so we cannot complain after we saw at the end of last year, Tushar Patni told Reuters.

The buyers are now accustomed to current price levels, and we think the market is set to see positive sales figures in the coming months.

Spot gold closed at $923.50 an ounce in Europe on Friday on positive sentiment, with supply problems, firmer oil and plans by some producers to cut their hedging positions underpinning the market. Prices have hit several peaks last year hitting gold sales in Abu Dhabi.

Sales fell 25pc in volume and 30pc in value.A surge in oil prices boosted gold’s appeal as a hedge against inflation.—Reuters