06 Nov , 2021 By : Kanchan Joshi
Gold and silver continued their upward momentum this week in India, supported by dovish stance of central banks and festive buying demand. On MCX, gold futures jumped 0.82% to settle near three-month high of Rs48,000 per 10 gram on Friday while silver rose 0.33% to Rs64330 per kg. In fact, gold has surged about Rs1,000 per 10 gram over the past two sessions.
In global markets, gold rose more than 1% on Friday to a near two-month high as major central banks' dovish tone on interest rates this week supported the demand for the safe-haven metal. Spot gold was up 1.2% at $1,813 while silver rose 1.2% to $24.05 per ounce. This week, the central bank announcements helped gold reverse from early losses.
On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve after its two-day policy meeting stuck to its view that inflation would prove "transitory" and would likely not require a fast rise in interest rates. The next day the Bank of England surprised investors by keeping rates on hold.
Yields on the US 10-year treasury notes on Friday slipped to their lowest level in about a month. This came despite better-than-expected jobs data in US that pushed Wall Street to new highs.
The US economy added a better-than-expected 531,000 jobs last month as a wide range of industries took on workers, and the unemployment rate dropped to 4.6%, Labor Department data showed.
Near-zero interest rates to spur economic growth during the COVID-19 pandemic have propelled gold prices to new highs over the last two years, as easy monetary policy cuts the opportunity cost of holding non-yielding assets.
In India, physical gold demand in India picked up as buyers took advantage of a slight dip in prices and bought the precious metal during the festival season.
"Retail demand during Dhanteras and Diwali was 25% more than the pre-pandemic level of 2019," said Amit Modak, chief executive officer at jeweller PN Gadgil and Sons, told Reuters.
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