Gold stays weak on global cues, muted demand

Gold prices fell further by Rs 75 to Rs 30,450 per 10 grams at the bullion market  on Saturday in tandem with a weakening global trend amid sluggish demand from local jewellers.

Silver also dropped by Rs 200 to Rs 40,300 per kg due to reduced offtake by industrial units and coin makers.

Traders said besides weak trend overseas, fading demand from local jewellers and retailers at prevailing levels at the domestic spot markets mainly kept pressure on gold prices.

Globally, gold fell 0.21% to $1,287.90 an ounce and silver by 0.35% to $17.01 an ounce in New York in Friday's  trade.

In the national capital, gold of 99.9 and 99.5% purity declined by Rs 75 each to Rs 30,450 and Rs 30,300 per 10 grams, respectively. It had shed Rs 25  on Friday.

Delivery declined

Sovereign, however, remained unaltered at Rs 24,700 per piece of eight grams. Silver ready traded lower by Rs 200 to Rs 40,300 per kg, while weekly-based delivery declined by Rs 270 to Rs 39,240 per kg. Silver coin, however, traded at previous level of Rs 74,000 for buying and Rs 75,000 for selling of 100 pieces.  

Dealers in India were offering a discount of up to $2 an ounce this week, unchanged from last week. The domestic price includes a 10% import tax. "Banks are cutting down imports since last week as gold is trading at a discount. Demand is likely to remain weak at least for the next two weeks," said one Mumbai-based dealer with a private bank.

Premiums in Hong Kong, meanwhile, were at $1 an ounce, compared with last week's $1-$1.20, and were nearly unchanged at 50-70 cents in Singapore, traders said. In Japan, gold continued to be sold at par with the global spot price, but demand turned upwards slightly as the dollar's weakening against the yen made gold cheaper for local buyers, a Tokyo-based trader said.