Mumbai — Gold and silver prices traded lower Thursday as easing geopolitical tensions and a hawkish signal from the U.S. Federal Reserve weighed on precious metals.
On the Multi Commodity Exchange, August gold futures fell as much as 1.37 percent, or Rs 2,111, to hit an intraday low of Rs 1,51,768 around 11:36 a.m.
Gold was trading at Rs 1,51,797, down 1.35 percent, or Rs 2,082. It touched an intraday high of Rs 1,52,831, still down 0.68 percent, or Rs 1,048, from its previous close of Rs 1,53,879.
July silver futures were trading at Rs 2,44,945, down Rs 6,862, or 2.73 percent, from the previous close of Rs 2,51,807.
Silver touched an intraday low of Rs 2,44,647, down nearly 3 percent, or Rs 7,160, during the session. It recorded an intraday high of Rs 2,48,000. Earlier in the day, gold and silver opened at Rs 1,52,306 and Rs 2,48,000, respectively.
Commodity market experts said gold and silver remained under pressure as rising U.S. Treasury yields and a stronger dollar reduced the appeal of precious metals.
They said investor sentiment weakened after the U.S. Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged while signaling support for additional rate hikes and reiterating its commitment to bringing inflation back to target.
Analysts also said easing geopolitical tensions following the interim U.S.-Iran agreement dampened demand for safe-haven assets.
However, silver’s losses were partly limited by expectations of strong industrial demand, supported by investments in artificial intelligence infrastructure, data centers, renewable energy projects and energy storage systems, particularly in China, analysts said.
In international markets, COMEX silver was trading nearly 3 percent lower at $68.76, while COMEX gold was down more than 1 percent at $4,318.90.
In energy markets, Brent crude declined 1.64 percent to trade around $78 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude fell 2 percent to about $75 per barrel. (Source: IANS)
