Gold rate dips on profit booking

Gold dipped on Friday on profit booking and as investors preferred to sit on cash while coronavirus cases continued to rise in India.

With businesses shut in several cities in India amid rising threat of coronavirus, investors are wary of betting on any asset class.

Gold futures were down 0.99 per cent or Rs 429 to Rs 43,113 per 10 grams. Silver futures were up 0.02 per cent or Rs 7 to Rs 41,329 per kg.

Spot gold markets in the country remained shut on Thursday due to countrywide lockdown to prevent spread of Covid-19, according to HDFC Securities. The country is undergoing a 21-day lockdown announced on Tuesday to curb the spread of coronavirus.



Globally, gold eased as some investors booked profits after prices hit a two-week high in the last session amid hopes for further stimulus to curb the coronavirus' economic toll, but the metal was headed for its best weekly gain in more than 11 years.

Spot gold slipped 0.5 per cent to $1,621.07 per ounce by 0035 GMT, having risen to its highest since March 12 on Thursday.

The metal was up 8.2 per cent for the week, its biggest since December 2008, on weak US unemployment data and the Federal Reserve's unprecedented economic stimulus measures.

US gold futures fell 0.8 per cent to $1,638.80.

China's net gold imports via Hong Kong fell 51.1 per cent in February, compared with the previous month, as the epidemic stalled activity in the country, data showed.

SPDR Gold Trust, the world's largest gold-backed exchange-traded fund, said its holdings rose 0.46 per cent to 953.54 tonnes on Thursday.

Palladium gained 0.2 per cent to $2,335.33 per ounce, platinum slipped 0.5 per cent to $732.21, while silver eased 0.2 per cent to $14.35.