Demand for platinum in India is set to rocket, as jewellery drives consumption of the precious metal according to the latest analysis.

Platinum Guild International's (PGI) India manager claims that the use of platinum in jewellery in the country is expected to more than double, touching 600 kgs in 2003.

Vaishali Banerjee told the Hindu Times that this rate of increase would see cumulative use of platinum for three years surpass the 1,000 kg mark.

She pointed to the demand among women aged 25-45 years as being particularly strong, adding that the number of outlets in India to service customers has now risen from 12 in 2000 to 150.

Ms Banerjee's comments came as Platinum Guild International (PGI) launched the Indian stage of its global branding initiative.

Meanwhile PGI strategic planner Lisa Mukhedkar said she expected the Indian trend to form part of a similar wider picture, with global consumption of platinum expected to touch 85 tonnes in 2003 up from 80 tonnes in 2002.

Ms Mukhedkar added that the US platinum market has shown recovery despite stagnation in Japanese consumption.