00:00They say, not all that glitters is gold.
00:08But here in Dubai, everyone buys real gold.
00:15In fact, the biggest purchase of gold here is the gold souk.
00:21Not only in Alahas, but also in Ginintuan.
00:24Only in Dubai, the biggest and heaviest gold ring in the whole world.
00:30Also, clothes.
00:3312 kilos of gold dress.
00:36Like covering all your body.
00:38Do you have something here that I can...
00:40Yes, okay.
00:42Eh, HM, how much is this?
00:45In dollars, it's 32,786.
00:50So let's see how much in pesos.
00:52It's equivalent to a house and lot.
00:55In the city of gold.
00:58Let's shop for go-go gold.
01:02We're here in their gold souk.
01:06Because there are a lot of people who can buy gold jewelry here.
01:09Tip, you can also make amends here.
01:12Let's go.
01:16The main export of the United Arab Emirates is oil.
01:21Their second export is gold.
01:24They are also fond of bling bling.
01:28Here in the gold souk, there are almost 400 stores that sell gold jewelry.
01:38They have a huge gold ring here.
01:42It weighs 64 kilos.
01:45It's covered with crystals.
01:47Only in Dubai, the biggest and heaviest gold ring in the whole world.
01:52Its price is estimated at 3 million dollars or more than P175 million pesos.
02:01The gold industry in Dubai began to flourish in the 18th century
02:07when Dubai became a major trading port for gold and jewelry
02:12from India, Africa, Europe, and other countries of the Middle East.
02:18That's why Dubai is known as the City of Gold.
02:24OMG!
02:26It's true that there are clothes made of gold.
02:29Who would wear this?
02:31How much is it? How heavy is it?
02:35Wow, Mohamed, this place is dripping with gold.
02:39How much do you think is the entire shop worth?
02:42Confidential.
02:43It's safe to say maybe billions or millions of dollars.
02:48What are some of the more interesting things that we should know?
02:52For example, we have one of the iconic sets in our museum.
02:55It's more than 12 kilos.
02:5712 kilos of gold dress?
02:59Like a big shield.
03:01Do you have something here that I can put on?
03:04The weight of the necklace is around 400 grams.
03:08What kind of women would wear such heavy?
03:12Women who have a lot of money.
03:14Do they actually wear this thing?
03:16Usually they wear it for a special occasion like a wedding.
03:19You cannot wear this one as a daily use.
03:21Some people like to buy this as an investment.
03:24They also have a gintong cinturon here.
03:27How many kilos is it, do you think?
03:29Built alone, it's around 1 kilo.
03:31And the blouse?
03:33Wow, so it's 3.5 kilos when you wear it.
03:37You have to be insured to wear this, right?
03:39You have to buy insurance.
03:41This is the safest city in the world.
03:43You don't have any security guard.
03:45There's no need for security, we are safe here.
03:47I have to remove this because I don't think I can afford this.
03:51But in case, how much is this?
03:53Around $32,000.
03:55So let's see how much in pesos.
03:57It's 1.8 million pesos.
04:00It's equivalent to a house and lot.
04:02Okay, I can't afford this, Mohamed.
04:04So I have to take it off.
04:05And because gintorito is not cheap compared to the Philippines,
04:10and it's tax-free,
04:12I will look for a place in my budget
04:15for a souvenir.
04:17I like the really modern design.
04:23I think I prefer this one, yeah.
04:26Congratulations, I would say an Arabic Mabrou.
04:28He said Mabrou, but I feel like I'm at a loss.
04:31I'm being spent.
04:32It's better to invest in gold because its value increases over time.
04:37If you just invest your money,
04:39your money will be affected by the so-called inflation
04:41or the increase in the price of goods.
04:43Unlike gold, its price increases over time.
04:46Some gintos in the gold souk
04:49are sent to the so-called gold refinery
04:53to be processed and made into gold bars.
04:59And in a rare opportunity,
05:02a famous gold refinery here in Dubai,
05:07in KMJS,
05:09showed us how these are made.
05:13Ginto is sparkling.
05:16This is real.
05:18There's no ball.
05:20Get lost.
05:22We can see and hold real gold bars.
05:28They will give us a tour of the refinery.
05:3115 kilos.
05:33Their chief operations officer,
05:36a Filipina,
05:38Jamie.
05:40From local markets and international markets.
05:43Where did this come from?
05:45This is from a local market in the gold souk.
05:48I read that here,
05:50for example, 22 carats,
05:52you can increase the carats.
05:54Yes, we will make 22 carats into 24 carats.
05:56The gintos received
05:58will be tested in the laboratory.
06:01We have a lot of countrymen here.
06:04I'm proud to work in their industry,
06:07which is not common in the Philippines.
06:10The gintos will be melted.
06:13These are from the souk.
06:16The unsold ones will be melted here.
06:19And then they will make it into a bar.
06:21They will pour it there.
06:24There.
06:27This is an interesting trivia.
06:29Once a year, when they have a general cleaning,
06:32the gintos that fall from the roof,
06:35even the ones that stick to the shoes of the workers,
06:39they collect all of them.
06:42That's how precious the gintos are.
06:44Wow!
06:46And you will also make bottles.
06:48So when it becomes like that, Jane, what's next?
06:52Chemical refining.
06:53So it will be put in a reactor with acid.
06:58And the finished product,
07:01gold bars.
07:03It's really real.
07:05I just held a gold bar.
07:08I can retire if I own all of these.
07:11So each of these gold bars,
07:15the price is 4.4 million plus.
07:18Because there are 50 gold bars in these two boxes,
07:23it's 220 to 222 million pesos, all of it.
07:29I also met a Filipino here
07:32who made her ginto dream come true here in Dubai.
07:35Mary Grace.
07:37Yup, me too.
07:39She was a huge live seller back then.
07:41Welcome back!
07:43But now,
07:45she owns a ginto store.
07:49Hi everyone, come inside the shop.
07:54These are our gold bars.
07:57We also have chains.
07:59Her stores are really affordable.
08:03We just sell them here.
08:05Price from the factory.
08:07She also sells diamonds here.
08:10This is our most expensive diamond.
08:14It's very, very rare.
08:16She has blue diamonds.
08:19Sometimes, it can reach up to 10 million dollars.
08:23It smells like a ginto.
08:26It's a 24 karat gold perfume.
08:29It has real gold.
08:31But before she started her business,
08:34she also went through trials.
08:37Mary Grace is from Abra.
08:40When I graduated from college,
08:42I got pregnant.
08:44It was a struggle.
08:46So that her children can have a place to call home,
08:49In 2009,
08:51she also started her business here in the Middle East.
08:54My first job here in Dubai was in a travel agency.
08:58Then,
09:00she fell in love with a housewife.
09:03And they got married.
09:05I was a full-time housewife.
09:07So I thought about how I can earn an income.
09:10This is large.
09:12Until she started live selling ukay-ukay in 2016.
09:16This is only five. It's beautiful.
09:18I was the only housewife in my room.
09:22I didn't know that I have a lot of customers.
09:26Even if she can earn her own money,
09:29it's not easy for Mary Grace to live abroad.
09:33Especially, she is far from her two children,
09:36and her first partner.
09:38I regret that I didn't go home when I graduated.
09:41Maybe that's the struggle of OFWs here.
09:45She has a sling.
09:47So that she can forget her sadness,
09:49Mary Grace stops her business.
09:52Our customers asked if we have gold.
09:55So I got an idea.
09:57Okay, why not add more gold.
10:00The buy and sell of this
10:02hit her minors.
10:05So from her small room,
10:08she opened a new one.
10:09She opened her own gold store in 2021.
10:13Because of her hard work,
10:15her eldest son, Zyra,
10:17is about to become a doctor.
10:20I brought them here,
10:22and I taught my son his dream course.
10:26Now, I can help all the needs of my family.
10:30Before, Mary Grace only sold one.
10:33Now, she has 10 live sellers.
10:36Be strong, and don't lose hope.
10:40It's not only the animals that live here in Dubai.
10:44It's also the heart and story of our hardworking countrymen.
10:50That is gold.
11:07And don't forget to hit the bell button
11:10for our latest updates.
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