Latest Gold Prices: 24-Carat Gold Below Rs 60,000 Mark; What's Impacting Yellow Metals?

Gold prices in India continued to loose its shine on Tuesday tracking downside trends of international prices. The 24-carat yellow metal has erased its Rs 60,000 mark, while the 22-carat came below Rs 55,000 levels. MCX gold futures is also in red, while comex gold continues to be under pressure. Gold which saw huge buying last week as the Israel-Hamas war tapped the need for safe-haven assets, however, this week, the bullions could not sustain their performance owing to higher-than-expected US inflation data.

In India, the 24-carat gold is available at Rs 59,950 per 10 grams, down by Rs 160 from Rs 60,110 per 10 grams of the previous day. While 22-carat gold price declined by Rs 150 to Rs 54,950 per 10 grams compared to the previous day's print of Rs 55,100 per 10 grams.

MCX gold futures expiring in December, traded at Rs 59,114 per 10 grams, marginally down from the previous day. The bullion has touched an intraday low of Rs 59,000 after opening at an intraday high of Rs 59,166.

At the global front, the spot gold slipped to an intraday low of $1,913.60 an ounce, while US gold futures also expiring in December dropped to $1,924.85 an ounce. Both are trading in red.

Last week, as per Kotak Institutional Equities data, MCX gold gained by 4.5%, while MCX silver surged by 4.6%. International prices like Comex gold and silver outperformed by zooming 5.2% and 5.4% respectively.

The reason why gold prices are under pressure this week is because higher-than-expected US inflation rate of 3.7% in September 2023 has heigtened the probability for rate hike in the forthcoming policy of Federal Reserve. In rate hike scenario, dollar strengthens against a basket of world currencies, which makes the greenback more attractive than gold for overseas investors.

Dollar has surged to near 11-month highs currently.

Ravindra Rao, CMT, EPAT, VP-Head Commodity Research, Kotak Securities said, "Today, investors might be closely watching US Retail sales, Industrial production and speeches from fed officials for further cues on the rate hike trajectory."

Also, Rahul Kalantri, VP Commodities, Mehta Equities said, "In today's session, we anticipate that both gold and silver will exhibit volatility. Gold finds support at the $1902-1888 range, with resistance at $1925-1936. Meanwhile, silver's support is at $22.20-21.98, and its resistance lies at $22.64-22.78. In terms of Indian Rupees (INR), gold's support levels are at Rs59,110 and Rs58,840, while resistance is at Rs59,650 and Rs58,840. For silver in INR, the support is at Rs70,650-69,910, and resistance is at Rs71,980-72,550."

Further, Rao highlighted that US President Joe Biden is travelling to Israel on Wednesday, in a visit designed to signal US solidarity and to ramp up efforts to prevent the conflict from turning to a regional war. ETFs continue to witness outflows amid higher real rates and term premium.

On Monday's performance, Kalantri said, gold and silver prices experienced a slight weakening on Monday due to regular downside corrections and profit-taking by short-term futures traders, following the substantial gains of the previous week. Additionally, the rise in U.S.

Treasury yields at the beginning of the trading week had a bearish impact on the precious metals market. The Chinese Yuan also faced pressure as the gap between 10-year bond yields in the United States and China increased to 1.90%. Furthermore, the absence of any significant unexpected developments in the Middle East over the weekend prevented precious metals from surging to higher levels.